Love Is Thicker Than Blood
by KiraTatashi
Summary: He was sent to assassinate her, but ends up being bound up in her love instead. Will fate force him to take her life, and is their love strong enough to survive even bloodshed? A&C, K&L, D&M, Y&OC. Chapter 25 up!
1. Sudden Intrusion

Chapter 1 Sudden Intrusion

_A/N Heya, thank you to those who have supported me throughout my other fanfics, and I hope I will get equal support in this fanfic too. I hope you gals & guys enjoy this fanfic as well!_

_Proper Summary: Athrun is sent by his father to Orb to assassinate Orb's princess, Cagalli Yula Athha. Accompanying him to shield his true identitiy and purpose for being at Orb, he disguises himself as foreigner who was forced out of his country, and so he sought refuge at Orb. However, after he breaks into the princess's apartment and telling her his made-up story, she takes him in secretly out of pity. Realising he has succeeded in his first step in getting closer to the princess, he plots his moves carefully in order not to be suspected of anything. However, in the midst of his stay at Orb, he falls for the princess instead, will fate permit them to be together?_

"Athrun, I want you to assassinate Orb's princess. However, this assassination will not be an immediate one. I want you to try and get close to the princess so you will not be one of the suspects after you kill her. I'm giving you a total of 3 months, if I do not hear from you by then, I will send someone down to check on you. Is that clear?" commanded Patrick Zala, standing behind his oakwood desk and facing his son, before throwing him an image of the Orb princess.

"Yes sir! I'll set off for Orb immediately!" replied Athrun, in a strict military tone, despite the fact that the man standing before him was indeed his father.

"Athrun, I expect you to succeed with this task. I will not compromise and failure is not an option. You're dismissed!" instructed the senior Zala, sending his son on his way.

"Thank you, sir!" replied Athrun sternly, saluting his father and taking the image with him, before turning and striding briskly out of the office.

Athrun slowed down once he was sure he was out of earshot of his father's office, he regulated his speed to his normal walking pace. He took a good look at the image of the Orb princess. Athrun couldn't help but realise that despite the princess's tomboyish looks, she was quite attractive in one way or another.

Checking his wrist watch, Athrun sighed deeply before jogging off to his room to pack up and book a private space shuttle to Orb.

Once he had brought along all his needed items and belongings, he headed down to the shuttle service counter, however, he realised that a booking had already been made by his father for him.

"Athrun!" came the sweet voice of a girl, jogging toward him, he long baby pink hair flowing behind her. _Haro! Haro! Athrun! Haro! Lacus!_

"L-Lacus! I didn't expect to meet you here!" exclaimed Athrun, looking half stunned at his fiancee of two years. He had met Lacus two years back after her father and his father had arranged an engagement for them. Throughout the two years though, he had only seen her several times, as he was often away at ZAFT.

Lacus Clyne was the pop-star singer of PLANTs, and her words had the influential power to inspire the citizens, which made her useful in times of trouble and crisis.

"My father came down here yesterday for a meeting with yours, and I thought I'd might as well find you. However, I can see you're leaving for somewhere again?" questioned Lacus sweetly, though there was a tint of disappointment in her voice.

"Yeah, my father has ordered me to go to Orb on a special mission. I've got a rather tedious and dangerous task to complete within 3 months." said Athrun sighing and looking down at his feet before perking up again. "I had no idea you and your father were here, my father didn't inform me about it. If I knew I would've taken you out somewhere,"

_Haro! Athrun! I'm ok! Are you ok? Haro!_

"Hush Pink!" said Lacus, sounding not at all snappy toward the bouncing ball-shaped device that Athrun had made for her. In fact he had made dozens of those bouncing devices for her, in all sorts of colours.

Lacus returned her attention to Athrun, "It's all right, you need not take me out anywhere. Just being able to meet you makes me contented already. Now I suppose you're to be on your way? Be careful though, you have my blessing."

"Thanks," replied Athrun, smiling warmly back down at her, before slowly and bashfully planting a soft kiss on her cheek.

Lacus bade goodbye to her fiance, as she watched the space shuttle launch from a launch vector and out through an opening into space.

"How long will it be before we reach Orb?" Athrun questioned the pilot, poking his head out slightly from the backseat.

"Approximately 4 hours, sir. Also, Chairman Zala instructed me to land in a nearby forest, in order not to be discovered." explained the pilot coolly.

Athrun nodded in reply, before leaning back in the chair and watching the galactic scenery fly past the window of the window of the space shuttle. He had never been instructed to assassinate anyone before, especially not a _princess._

Orb's security was highly efficient, which meant he would've to be extra cautious when he crept around the vicinity of Orb.

The blue-haired co-ordinator spent the next 4 hours plotting out his plan and moves carefully, making sure that his plan was absolutely foolproof.

When the pilot landed the shuttle in a clearing of trees, Athrun thanked him and exitted the shuttle. The shuttle took off back into the night sky, leaving Athrun no other source of shelter or protecion other than himself and his backpack.

There was a sand coloured building in sight ahead of him, which according to the map was the house where the princess lived. Taking a deep breath Athrun stood up to full height.

"Freeze! Who are you, intruder! Put your hands up and drop the bag!" ordered a voice from behind, which was unmistakably a girl's.

Athrun had the urge to attack, however, he had more than enough brains that if he showed any signs of violence, the girl behind would probably fire at him if she had a gun, which Athrun assumed she did.

Slowly Athrun spun around to face the girl, and lowered his backpack onto the grassy terrain. However, his eyes widened at the sight of the girl. Wearing a red close-fitting tank top, and khaki pants with its edges tucked into a pair of black boots trekking boots.

The girl had shoulder length blonde hair and the most captivating honey-brown eyes he had seen in all of his entire born days. Athrun was staring so much at her, that he didn't realise that he was making his interest in her a tad to obvious.

"What're you looking at!" barked the girl fiercely, noticing that his eyes were travelling up and down her body.

"Athrun, control yourself, she's the darn _princess_! You've found her! But you can't kill her yet," Athrun thought to himself, before focusing his gaze on his feet.

"Who are you, and where are you from?" asked the Orb princess, circling him cautiously, gun still pointed at him.

"I was forced out of my country, and I flew here by shuttle but it crashed. I've been forced to seek refuge here," said Athrun calmly, but suddenly he tensed realising he had just said his shuttle crashed, but there was no crashed shuttle in sight!

"Oh really? Then where is that _damn_ shuttle you said _crashed_ here?" questioned the Orm princess, clearly trying to search Athrun inside out.

"Err it... umm it... err... _sank!_ It sank!" said Athrun, suddenly realising that there was a coastline not far out.

"So you're saying that you're left homeless, now?" asked the Orb princess, raising an eyebrow at Athrun. However the stern look had faded from her face, which was now replaced by a look, half puzzled and half sorry at the same time.

Since it was the first thing that popped into his mind, Athrun fell to his knees and begged her to take him in.

"Alright! Shut up! I'll take you in, but if anybody finds you with me, you'll be in deep shit and so will I." exclaimed the princess, rubbing her head and shaking her head almost going nuts from all the intruder's whining.

"Follow me, there's a way we can avoid those freakin' security bums." snapped the princess, turning off the dirt track and into the dense undergrowth.

Athrun was a little shocked at her use of language and the way she speaked, as after all, the girl was a princess. He would've expected a princess to be a lot more feminine and gentle.

"Can I ask a question?" asked Athrun meekly, hoping she wouldn't tell him off.

"Shoot," she replied, crossing over a small stream to a gate, which had vines growing all over it. There was a small pit dug in the ground under the gate, which made it possible for her to actually lie down and slip under and through it.

"Are you the Orb princess? I think I've seen you somewhere on the news in my country," said Athrun slowly, making up a little lie to cover up for himself.

"Yeah, so what if I am, I don't really care." replied the princess, facing him as she stood on the other side of the fence. "I don't know if you can actually slip through that, or you could try and climb over the gate."

Knowing that if he climbed over the gate, it would make it all too obvious that he was no ordinary mortal, but a co-ordinator, so hoping it would be his lucky day, he tried to slip through under the gate.

Sure enough, Athrun managed to slip under the gate, escaping with a few minor scratches on his arms.

"Let's go before we can get seen," said the princess, running toward the house, and using her arms to hoist herself up onto the window sill before holding on to the pipe and climbing up to the second window.

Once she disappeared out of sight, Athrun took a deep breath, ran stepped on the first window before using the force to push himself up to the second, and slipping through.

"Shut up, don't make too much noise of my bodyguard, Kisaka, will hear you." instructed the princess.

"Yes ma'am," replied Athrun softly, sitting down in the corner of the room.

"Don't call me ma'am, my name's Cagalli. And please, just because I've taken you in as a refugee, doesn't mean you have to act like one. Make yourself at home, and you don't need to ask for permission to use the toilet." said the princess firmly.

"I'm Ath-Alex. Alex Dino," said Athrun quickly, realising he had nearly given off his true identity.

"Pleased to meet you," replied Cagalli, pulling out an extra mattress and pillows from the cupboard and laying it on the floor.

"Do make yourself comfortable, I'm going to take a shower, just ask if you need anything." said Cagalli grinning at Athrun, before disappearing into the bathroom.

Boy, she sure was much of a tomboy, and that grin was the only friendly gesture, besides her asking him to make himself comfortable, Athrun had received form her since he first met her.But all together, Athrun supposed she was quite a decent girl. The thought of having to kill her in the end, really irked him.

Athrun got up and was pacing the length of the room, thinking hard about what his enxt move would be.

The water in the bathroom had stopped a minute ago, and Athrun assumed Cagalli was changing and would be out in a second. However, there was a loud knock on the room door, and instantly the toilet door flew open.

Cagalli darted out pushed Athrun onto her bed, before pulling her comforter over him and right up over his bed, before throwing herself beside him on the bed.

"Cagalli, your father asked me to pass you this," said Kisaka, throwing Cagalli a letter.

"Thanks," replied Cagalli, smiling gratefully at her body guard.

"Umm Cagalli, what's _that_?" asked Kisaka, pointing to the bump beside Cagalli, which was obviously Athrun, as she lay sideways, head resting on her elbow.

"Oh _this_? It's a... a giant... _back support!_ See, I've been having this really bad backaches lately, so I bought this for myself." said Cagalli, rolling over onto her back, before lying onto Athrun.

Athrun was lying on his stomach, and he had a hard time breathing now that Cagalli was lying on his back.

Kisaka raised an eyebrow at Cagalli, "It really works, it's got such brilliant support!" exclaimed Cagalli, raising a hand and whacking her so called 'back support' hard.

Athrun's face scrunched up in pain, as he felt her hand hit him hard on his upper thigh. He could feel his face becoming red from the pressure, and wasn't sure if he could hold it much longer.

"Yeah it's kind of useful, and if I'm lazy to go to my desk, I could just use this as a table." said Cagalli, getting up and turning herself around, before throwing one leg over Athrun and sitting in a writing position.

Athrun had to keep his mouth tight shut to stop the grunting sounds from escaping from him, all her movement made it feel as though she was humping him, though he knew better than to think dirty thoughts.

"Alright whatever you say," said Kisaka, the look of suspicion still not fading from his face.

The door closed shut, and Cagalli rolled off Athrun and ran to lock the door. She pulled the covers back to reveal a flushed faced Athrun, who tumbled off the bed onto the floor.

His face immediately returned to its normal colour, but it reddened once more out of embarrassment, when she appeared standing beside him, wearing what looked like a tight fitting white sleeveless shirt and black sports shorts, revealing her long slender legs.

"Sorry about that, I think you'll have to put up with more of my 'back support' ideas, whenever anyone comes in here. I'm hope you're ok," said Cagalli looking at the flushed look on his face, though truthfully, Athrun knew he was blushing red hot.

"It's getting late, why don't we turn in?" suggested Cagalli, looking at Athrun.

He nodded quickly, before getting to his feet and shaking his head a little.

"Feel free to wash up in the bathroom, Alex." stated Cagalli, tucking herself into bed and rolling over onto her side.

Athrun couldn't help but remember the image of her long legs. Fair and slender, and her skin looked so smooth. However, he smacked himself lightly on the head for thinking that way of her.

"She's your victim you asshole!" thought Athrun, before disappearing into the bathroom.

_A/N: There, first chappie up! This chapter was a little boring I know, but it'll slowly get more interesting, not to worry! Pls review, and I hope you enjoyed it! Jaa!_


	2. Keep It Under Wraps

Chapter 2 Keep It Under Wraps

_A/N Sorry that I haven't updated for a little more than week. Came down with a bad flu, had high fever and severe nausea. Couldn't even walk on the second day, haha! But I feel heaps better now, thank you. Anyway, here's the long awaited second chappie, enjoy!_

There was a clamorous knock on Cagalli's room door, and as if by instinct, Cagalli pushed Athrun into her bathroom and closed the bathroom door shut. Taking one last glance around her room, to make sure there were no signs of Athrun around, the blonde girl cleared her throat and headed for the door.

As Cagalli had predicted, her trusty bodyguard, Kisaka, stood formally by the door, looking as firm as ever.

"Cagalli, your father wants a private meeting with you in his office without delay. Now without further ado, I suggest you make your way to his office as soon as possible." advocated Kisaka, before bowing to the Orb Princess and closing the door gently.

"THANK YOU!" yelled Cagalli behind the door, after realising she had forgotten to thank her bodyguard for delivering the message.

Sighing a sigh of relief, she slowly walked toward her bathroom door, her feet making no sound on the carpeted floor of her bedroom, like a rabbit's soft paws padding across the soft grass of a meadow.

Cagalli pushed open the toilet door, to find her teenage refugee sitting cross-legged on the bathroom floor, looking tranquil and conciliatory.

The Orb Princess had to hold back her giggles as she stared down at Athrun, who was staring wide-eyed and innocently up at her. He looked childish and yet babyishly handsome at the same time.

"Cut it out with the big eyes, Alex. You look somewhat like a cross between a baby and an offended puppy." stated Cagalli bluntly, taking Athrun by the arm and pulling him to his feet.

Athrun couldn't help but marvel at her strength for a girl, and what's more, a _natural_ girl. However, the blue-haired co-ordinator guessed that although the girl was a princess, she was such a tomboy that she probably worked out four times a week.

"Oh yeah, and if you were looking at my bathroom shelf earlier, just to let you know, but I don't use all that prissy girly stuff. Moisturisers, skin toners, hair conditioners, face creams, clay masks and all that, yuck! Eeeeew!" said Cagalli disgustedly, walking out of the bathroom shaking in disgust.

Athrun could very well tell that she didn't use them or even lay a finger on them, as the products were still encased in their boxes or wrappers. Besides, her skin was a smooth a peach's, and her hair was as silky as silk itself.

Athrun snapped out of his thoughts, and smacked himself hard on the face, for thinking that way of her.

"Alex, you can come out of the bathroom! Just because I didn't tell you to, doesn't mean you have to remain in there! So even if I don't tell you to get out, and I was going to bathe, you wouldn't have enough brains to move out automatically!" barked the Orb Princess loudly.

"Yes ma'am!" replied Athrun, quickly exitting the bathroom and settling himself into a nearby chair.

"Don't call me ma'am, I've got a name, and it's Cagalli. I'm going for a little meeting with my father, please don't leave the territory of this room. I know there's nothing much to see in here, but if you want to live, I suggest you pay heed to my advice. Oh yes, don't make too much noise, or people walking past might hear you." said Cagalli knowingly, putting on her coat and leaving the room.

"Kisaka, let's go." said Cagalli, walking down the corridor with her bodyguard to her father's office.

"You took quite a while don't you think?" questioned Kisaka, looking down at the Orb Princess, and raising an eyebrow.

"Sorry, I had to clear my cupboard to find my coat," Cagalli made up, biting her lip and trying to keep her face straight.

Kisaka sighed before leading them on. Once they had arrived at the Lion of Orb's office entrance, Kisaka left Cagalli to go in, as he waited for her outside the office for her return.

"Cagalli, lost track of the time, did you?" asked Uzumi, as his daughter sat down in the chair opposite him.

"Sorry father, had to clear up my cupboard to find my coat." replied Cagalli bluntly, giving the same excuse she had given Kisaka.

"Cagalli, I am your father you need not dress so formally. You could come in your pyjamas, and it wouldn't matter to me." replied Uzumi wisely, sighing and leaning back in his office swivel chair.

"I'm ageing quickly Cagalli, it will only be a matter of time before you take my place as ruler of Orb." stated Uzumi knowingly, looking wisely at his daughter.

"Father don't say such things, please. You'll live to a ripe old age! Besides, I don't think I'm cut out to be a ruler, and I was... adopted by you anyway. So the throne should go to someone who is blood related to you." said Cagalli, staring down at her lap.

"Adopted or not, I still trust you more than I trust anyone else. This person could be blood related to me, but if I don't trust him, do you think I could leave the affairs and ideals of Orb with him? Besides, your brother Kira, will be with you to help you, Cagalli." said Uzumi knowingly, lifting Cagalli's chin with his hand.

"But I'm only 16, who would take orders from a 16 year old girl?" asked Cagalli bluntly.

"Cagalli, the country of Orb already respects and loves you as their Princess. I'm sure they will treat you with the same respect and love when you become their ruler." reassured Uzumi, smiling warmly down at his daughter.

"Did you ask me down here to tell me all this?" asked Cagalli softly, looking up at her father, who even when sitting, still towered over her.

"Yes, and I think I've said all that was on my mind. You may go," said Uzumi dismissing Cagalli to her room.

"Kisaka, you can go for breakfast if you like. I'm not hungry today," said Cagalli heading back to her room, and giving her bodyguard permission to go for breakfast.

However, the moment Cagalli reached the entrance of her room, she heard sounds of things dropping and things knocking against other things. A feeling of worry swept over Cagalli as her hand made a dive for the doorknob.

Sure enough a messy and shocking sight greeted her as her room door swung open. There in the room, was her brother, Kira Yamato, holding a penknife and wrestling on the floor with her blue-haired refugee.

"Stop! I, CAGALLI YULA ATHHA, PRINCESS OF ORB COMMAND YOU STOP WHATEVER YOU ARE DOING, AND EXPLAIN YOURSELVES!" bellowed Cagalli heatedly, though on the inside she was feeling a slight tinge of worry.

"Cagalli, I found this guy in your room! He's probably some kind of thief!" said Kira, pulling Athrun to his feet and holding the penknife at his throat.

"Kira release him! I SAID RELEASE HIM!" yelled Cagalli, glaring angrily at her younger twin brother, who hesitantly and grudgingly released Athrun.

Apparently during the little wrestling session, Kira had managed to cut Athrun on both arms, and had cut himself as well.

"Kira, Alex is no thief. I took him in yesterday evening. He's got nowhere else to go, and if you're thinking he's some kind of thief or killer, I'm still in one piece! Which means he's absolutely, practically, positively harmless!" exclaimed Cagalli jogging to Athrun's side and helping him up.

"You're telling me you took in a total stranger based on what he told you, just like that?" asked Kira, looking half shocked. Knowing his sister all too well, he knew his sister would never do something like that, or he thought she wouldn't.

"So what if I did? Anyway, just keep your mouth shut about Alex or I'll have your head rolling!" barked Cagalli reaching for a First Aid kit and tossing her brother some gauze swabs and a tube of anti-septic lotion.

"I'll do it myself, thanks." said Athrun, trying to pull away from the Orb Princess, but she seemed to have a firm grip on him, and refused to let go.

"No, you won't! I'll do it, it's half my fault you actually got into this mess," said Cagalli, dabbing the blue-haired young man's gash on his left arm.

Athrun knew better than to challenge the blodne girl, he had only stayed with her overnight, and already knew better than to go against her wishes.

A pile of books had fallen off the bookshelf, and apparently, one of Cagalli's night lamps had shattered.

"You've got a cut here," said Cagalli, inching a little closer to the side of Athrun's face to get a better look.

However, when he turned his head to face her, his lips brushed against hers by accident. Cagalli's eyes widened and she blushed, as she paused in her tracks, while Athrun just looked away, his face apparently, redder than hers.

Kira just sulked as he watched his sister and some unknown guy to him, behave in such an awkward way.

"Kira, you're going to have to help yourself, and you're also going to have to clear my room for me later since you started the fight." stated Cagalli, changing the subject, and her voice returning to normal, as she continued cleaning Athrun's wounds.

Kira just muttered to himself, jealous that his sister would rather help a total stranger than her own flesh and blood brother.

"Yes ma'am." hissed Kira, before getting up and leaving the room, slamming the door hard behind him.

_A/N Ok, I know this chappie's a little short, but sorry, I feel kind of queasy again, and I don't think I can hold out much longer. Looks like I've still got the flu, but at least it wasn't as bad as before. Anyway, until next time, ja! _


	3. Blossoming Love

Chapter 3 Blossoming Love

_A/N Ohaiyo! Sorry if the previous chappie was a tad too short, I was feeling a little peaky, sorry. Anyway, this chapter should be a little longer I hope, happy reading!_

"Kira! How many freakin' times must I tell you to knock on the door, and not to just barge into my room like that, before the message manages to get through that thick-headed skull of yours!" exclaimed Cagalli heatedly.

"I don't see what you're so jumpy about, and I'm your brother, so why do I have to knock?" questioned Kira stubbornly, eyebrow's furrowed in annoyance, and glaring angrily at his elder sister, who apparently looked as if the temperature of her blood was on the rise.

"It's basic manners, you jerk! In addition, you're my teensy weensy, little baby brother, which means you've got to show me some respect! Besides, unless you're blind and haven't noticed, I'm trying to keep Alex a secret, and if you dare tell on him to anyone, I'll see to it personally that you are beheaded!" hollered Cagalli ferociously, standing to full height and facing Kira, who although was the younger of the two, was half a head taller than his sister.

"I'm NOT your BABY BROTHER! I may be _younger _than you, but it's only by a few minutes, which doesn't make me a _BABY_!" contradicted Kira exasperatedly, folding his arms and staring sideways, away from Cagalli who looked as cross as ever.

"Look at the both of you, bickering like a cluster of grandmothers quarreling at the market, over which of their sons is of higher status and class." Athrun suddenly interrupted, but then quickly sealed his lips tight shut once more, realising that he had just tried to correct the Orb Princess and her brother.

The twins turned to face their little blue-haired refugee, who looked kind of reproachful and as though was wishing he could take back what had just escaped from his mouth.

"You know, the both of us actually don't bicker much, unless one of us brings up the issue of who's older than who, and the person who usually brings it up is almost always none other than my _elder _sister! Because she doesn't realise that it's a sensitive issue!" stated Kira bluntly, shooting a sideways glance at his blonde sister, who was looking away from him, head held high in an arrogant manner.

A loud knock came from Cagalli's room door, and Kisaka's low voice came from behind it, calling out her name and asking her to open the door for him.

"Er... just a... minute!" yelled Cagalli, panicking and quickly pushing the blue-haired young man behind her into her bathroom. However, in the hustle, Kira happened to get in the way, resulting in him being pushed into the bathroom as well.

"Don't make a single noise while you're in here. Not a cough, a sneeze, a burp and not even a squeak!" instructed Cagalli, making her voice as close to a whisper but trying to make it loud enough for the two young men to hear her at the same time.

Swiftly, she slid the bathroom door shut before going to her room door to answer and fulfil Kisaka's request of letting him in.

"Ah Cagalli, I want to search your room," said Kisaka firmly, looking at the blonde Orb Princess straight in the eye. The fully grown bodyguard towered over the sixteen year-old princess, and despite this factor, he still brought no sense of fear to the girl, who still stood her ground.

"Are you _asking_ me, or _telling_ me?" hissed Cagalli sarcastically, suspecting that Kisaka was up to something fishy, since he rarely ever requested to enter her room, let alone search it.

"I'm _telling_ you," replied Kisaka sternly, looking at the princess firmly, holding out a letter of permission from none other than the Lion of Orb, Uzumi Nara Athha.

It was clear that even though Kisaka had never seen Athrun, he clearly sensed the outsider's presence in Cagalli's room. Cagalli's honey-brown eyes scanned the letter briefly, before folding it neatly, and glaring up at her bodyguard, who looked ready to

push past her if he had to.

"So you suspect that I'm _hiding_ someone in my room, do you? And I also see that you believe so strongly in your assumption that you've even approached my father and discussed the matter with him. Well, I'm telling you that your little assumption, is simply just too far-fetched." snarled Cagalli, her blood boiling and prickling beneath her peach coloured skin.

"Well, we'll find out sooner or later," replied Kisaka, deepening his tone to make himself sound more serious, and that he meant business.

Cagalli's bodyguard pushed past her roughly, and began searching her room thoroughly. Under her bed, in her cupboard and even in a wooden treasure chest where Cagalli kept her most precious belongings.

At that point of time, Cagalli just felt like lunging forward at her bodyguard, pounding, ripping and tearing him to pieces like a provoked mother grizzly bear.

Finally Kisaka came to the foot of Cagalli's bathroom, "Open it," he commanded, the first time he had ever had any control over Cagalli in all the years he had served her as bodyguard.

Cagalli's could feel her legs trembling in a mix of panic and anger, as her brain thought hard for an idea. Kisaka was staring at her expectantly, waiting patiently for her to obey his instruction, and open the bathroom door.

"There's..." began Cagalli, but her voice didn't seem to be able to come out any further than half way up her throat.

"I'm in here! I'm using the bathroom! Don't you _dare_ open it!" yelled Kira from inside, hoping that his little statement would at least help his sister ward off her bodyguard, who seemed determined to prove the princess wrong.

"Ah oh, yeah! Kira's using the bathroom, he's been in there for a good 10 minutes! I don't know what's with you men, take so long in the bathroom just squating there and reading the newspapers! I mean, can't you read the newspapers in a nicer location, haha." Cagalli made up, trying to make herself sound normal instead of guilty and nervous.

"If that's the case, I'll put my suspicions to rest, _for now_." said Kisaka, stressing on the last two words of his sentence. "Although, I really am very suspicious about your recent behaviour, Cagalli. You've been sneaking excess food into your room from the dining hall lately. Giving the excuse that you like to binge on things in-between meals."

"Relax, if I was hiding someone up here, you'd hear him." reassured Cagalli, regaining control of herself and pushing her bodyguard out of her room and closing the door.

Cagalli tip-toed to the bathroom door and slid it open. "I love you Kira!" she exclaimed flinging her arms around her brother, before abruptly letting go. "On second thought, I love what you said earlier."

"You seem overjoyed to be able to have to keep Alex here. You sure the both of you haven't been up to anything _naughty_?" teased Kira, a childish smirk playing across his thin lips.

Athrun flinched at the statement, feeling the hairs on the back of his neck pulll erect at the thought of himself playing _naughty_ with the Princess of Orb. Athrun shuddered slightly before dismissing the thought, and scratching his neck lightly.

"No! Certainly not! We're just FRIENDS!" bellowed Cagalli hotly, whacking her brother hard on the back of his head.

"You know something, friends always turn into close friends, and close friends become lovers. So I'm going to leave you two future lovebirds alone to get to know one another better! Ciao!" teased Kira, hopping jovially out of the room.

"SHUT UP! YOU PEEWIT!" hollered Cagalli hotly, after her brunette younger brother, who could still be heard humming and singing along the corridor, sounding something like, "_La la la la la tra la la dum di di dum dum la la!"_

"Ugh! My life is becoming _rojak_ (A type of Indian or Chinese delicacy)!" exclaimed Cagalli slumping into a nearby beanbag chair. "First it was the riots started between co-ordinators and naturals, then it was the Junius 7 incident..."

However, the blonde princess paused in her speech when she noticed that her little roommate, seemed to have been petrified in the midst of walking toward his mattress.

"What? Did I say something?" asked Cagalli, her tone becoming a lot more gentle and soothing, rather than the rough tomoboyish tone she usually spoke in.

"My mother... she was... was on Junius 7... when it... ugh." said Athrun softly, sitting down on his mattress, before looking down, his hair covering his face, although it was quite obvious the way his body was shaking that he was trying hard not to cry.

"Oh my goodness, I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to, wait... you're a... a co-ordinator?" asked Cagalli, her eyes widening slightly, as she stared down at the blue-haired young man.

Athrun slowly looked up at Cagalli, wondering if she'd look angry or shocked. His emerald orbs were glistening with tears from the Orb Princess's previous statement about the Junius 7 incident.

"So what if I am? I don't really care... I'm still human, and I have feelings. In my heart lies an everlasting hate for those naturals who caused the Bloody Valentine Incident." said Athrun, pearly tears flowing from his emerald eyes as he looked down once more, remembering his loving mother.

Feeling a feeling of intense sympathy for the young man sitting and crying before her, Cagalli simply could not help but stand up and move towards him. As though losing all sense of control, she knelt down beside his mattress and extended both arms out toward him and wrapped them around his shoulders.

Athrun found his head leaning sideways against Cagalli's chest, and his eyes widened for a moment, before he snivelled once more breaking down into a fit of more tears, and calmly accepting the soothing comfort Cagalli was offering him.

"Goodness, this guy must've suffered a great deal. Losing his mother during the Bloody Valentine Incident on Junius 7. So he is a co-ordinator, but so what? Like he said, he IS still human." Cagalli thought to herself, before using her hand to stroke the side of his head, pushing back some of his soft blue hair.

_2 hours later after both have fallen asleep, remaining in the same position, Cagalli sitting on his mattress leaning on the side of her own bed, and Athrun lying in her arms_

_(11.50 p.m.)_

"No... mother... it can't be... MOTHER!" yelled Athrun jerking awake from his deep slumber, arousing Cagalli as well, whose hands resumed the stroking of his head, before he gently pulled away, feeling as if he was in a vertigo.

Athrun's breathing was heavy and fast, and he had broken into a cold sweat, as things around the room seemed to sway and wobble like jelly.

"It was just a nightmare, Alex. Oh my, you've got a fever," said Cagalli, feeling the blue-haired co-ordinator's forehead, before shaking herself awake, standing up and moving quickly to the toilet to get a wet towel.

Athrun fell backwards onto his mattress, closing his eyes, as the underside of his eyelids prickled with heat. He felt exhausted, just after having a nightmare of his mother.

Cagalli came back minutes later, and placed the cool wet towel on his head before wiping his sweat away with her hands. "Go to sleep, you need plenty of rest." she said, pushing back some of his fringe, and stroking his cheek gently.

Only then was when the thought struck her, "Oh my gosh! Why the hell am I stroking his cheek? And why did I fall asleep with him resting in my arms earlier? AAAAAAAAH!" Cagalli thought.

However, she just couldn't seem to stop herself from touching his face, he was undoubtedly charming, and broodingly handsome. She seemed to be glued to him by a bond that would soon seem to turn into love...

_A/N Chapter up! Ok, I seem to have enjoyed writing the last part, haha! And go to hell Kisaka, you're such a busybody! Chases after the bodyguard with a pitchfork. Pls review, and thank you for reading!_


	4. New Friend Found

Chapter 4 New Friend Found

_A/N Ok, the chapter title already pretty much gives away what's going to happen in this chappie, haha. And no Athrun has not forgotten about his little mission.But anyway, you'll see two new characters in this chappie, one's an OC and the other is Miriallia Haww. The OC is Kyo Yamajika, and those of you who have read my other fanfics, "Teen Life" or "A Second Generation", will know who she is and whether she's a co-ordinator or a natural. But in case some of you don't know, here are the character biographies._

_Cagalli Yula Athha: 16 years/Natural_

_Athrun Zala/Alex Dino: 17 years/Co-ordinator_

_Kira Yamato: 16 years/Co-ordinator_

_Miriallia Haww: 16 years/Natural_

_Kyo Yamajika: 16 years/Co-ordinator_

_There you go, their ages and human breeds, by the way, in this fanfic, to those who have read the above two fanfics mentioned, Kyo is NOT Athrun's sister. Enjoy this chapter!_

The morning rays of the sun shone brightly through Cagalli's bedroom window, and although the window glass was tinted, it still let in quite a bit of sunlight. The warm rays were reflected by the dresser top mirror onto Athrun's face, giving his alabaster skin a slight bronze glow.

Athrun's face scrunched up slightly, as he rolled over on his mattress, keeping his face out of the discomfort of the sun shining on his face. His emerald orbs fluttered open, like those of a baby's, eager to see what the morning had brought about, and what was awaiting him during the day.

The blue-haired co-ordinator sat up on his mattress, stretched a little before scanning the territory he was grounded to for any sign of a certain blonde princess, Cagalli Yula Athha. However, he didn't seem to sense her presence, and all he felt was a certain emptiness in his stomach.

Getting to his feet, Athrun looked around the room and spotted a note on Cagalli's neatly made bed. Stretching one last time, he took the note, his eyes scanning its words from left to right till he reached the end of it.

"Oh well tummy, you'll have to wait a while. Cagalli's out for an important meeting right now," Athrun thought to himself, patting his empty stomach lightly.

Out of the blue, there was a loud knock on the door, and immediately, Athrun dived into the bathroom, and slid the door shut. An auburn-haired girl poked her head in, scanning the room before stepping in and making way for another girl, this time for a girl with back-length orangey-red hair, which was cut in steps.

"I swore she told me he'd be in here," said the auburn-haired girl, Miriallia Haww. She worked as Uzumi Nara Athha's secretary, and was usually kept busy most of the time, unless the Lion of Orb was out on a business trip and had the entire duration of the time he was gone, free.

"She told me he same thing. But what d'you know, not a soul in sight. Maybe he's hiding. I mean Cagalli has been telling us that she's been having to hide him for the past few days." reassured the girl with red hair, Kyo Yamajika.

Kyo worked as a handmaiden at the Athha mansion most of the time, but when duty called, she was assigned to difficult roles like a bodyguard or a spy, rather spunky, eh?

"Come out... err... what's his name again?" questioend Miriallia, looking over at her partner, who was shaking her head bluntly.

"My my, you're really forgetful. It's Alex," stated Kyo, stepping further into the room, and making sure the room door was closed properly. She balanced the tray properly on her right hand, making sure none of the soup or the loaf of bread would spill or roll off the tray.

"Come out Alex, Alex, Alex, wherever you are." cooed Miriallia, searching under the bed, and in Cagalli's cupboard, until she reached the foot of the bathroom, it's door closed shut.

"Oh, stop it, Mirre. You sound like you're looking for a lost pet like a hamster or a guinea pig, which he certainly is not." snapped Kyo sternly, placing the tray of food on Cagalli's dresser and walking up to Miriallia.

"Maybe he's in here, I mean, it's the only place I haven't looked." said Miriallia, her hands reaching for the handle of the bathroom door, which was just inches from her hand.

Meanwhile, Athrun stood in the shower cubicle of the bathroom, wondering if he should just go out and show himself to them since Cagalli had sent them, but what if they were just acting? Either way he'd still be found, they were just at the door of the bathroom!

The bathroom door slid open, revealing a pair of girl standing at the doorway, staring at Athrun, none of them speaking a word. It was at least a good 15 seconds before Kyo broke the awkward silence.

"Oh well, we found him. Now let's get down to business or Cagalli will scream at us," said Kyo, disappearing out of sight from the bathroom doorway, leaving Miriallia to gently coax Athrun out of the bathroom.

"Relax, we're not going to eat you alive, now come over." said Kyo coolly, smiling an even-toothed smile at Athrun, who still looked kind of hesitant, about coming out from the doorway of the toilet.

Kyo sat cross-legged on the floor followed by Miriallia, and after a while, Athrun.

"Oh yes, before I forget. I'm Kyo Yamajika, pleased to meet you, Alex." Kyo introduced herself, shaking hands formally with Athrun, who smiled and introduced himself in return.

"I'm Miriallia Haww, pleasure." greeted Miriallia jovially, smiling cheerfully at Athrun, who nodded to show he heard her.

"Hey, if you need proof that Cagalli sent us, here it is." said Kyo holding a small card from Cagalli, which read, "I really sent them, I should be back soon. For now, JUST LISTEN TO THEM, DINO!" followed by her signature.

Athrun couldn't help but smile at the card. Ok, she still remembered that he needed to eat after all. He looked at the tray that one of the girls were holding. Suddenly, his sharp co-ordinator hearing picked up footsteps outside the door.

Kyo seemed to have heard it and drew out a handgun, pointing it at the door. Athrun found it odd since the footsteps sounded quite far away, and though they were steadily getting louder, even a natural wouldn't have been able to hear them.

"Who's there!" barked Kyo, gun pointed at the door, ready for it to open any moment.

Sure enough it opened, revealing a young man with brunette hair and lavender eyes. Athrun recognised him as Kira, Cagalli's twin brother, who regularly came in just to poke about his sister's room.

"Hey, chill it, missy! It's only me," said Kira, entering the room, his hands raised in surrender, before turning around midway and closing the door with his right foot.

"Oh ok, it's just you, I thought it would be Kisaka or someone from the Orb management." said Kyo, lowering her weapon and stuffing it back into the pocket of her apron.

"You know seriously, the uniform they make you handmaidens wear is really lame. I mean, a black bandana on the head and a black apron with some white frills on the front?" stated Kira bluntly, sniggering at the outfit Kyo was wearing.

"Hey, you think I WANT to wear this? Since I work here as a handmaiden, and I'm not in the position to change my own job, I'm FORCED to wear this, got it, mister? Besides, the bandana is to keep your hair out of the food you serve, and the apron is so you don't dirty your clothes, and unless you're blind, the apron has pockets, which makes it kind of handy." corrected Kyo curtly, making her dislike of her uniform clear enough for Kira to notice.

"You know Kyo, overall you're a really neat person, it's just that why are you ALWAYS so formal and firm? Why don't you try and relax a bit around friends, like us." suggested Miriallia, trying to break down Kyo's defences and see her true colours.

"Maybe she's just like that," said Athrun, finally finding the courage to actually speak his opinions or say something to someone other than Cagalli. "I've got a friend, who's so aggressive and firm, he never lets his guard down. Even around good friends,"

"Well, that's the first time I've heard you speak, other than when you introduced yourself. So, please speak what you have in mind, don't shut it up within yourself." encouraged Miriallia sweetly.

Without warning, the door latch opened and the door swung open slightly. Everyone held their breath, but let out a sigh of relief when they realised it was just Cagalli.

"Actually, Kyo is a rather sweet girl. She just refuses to let people in, and always puts on a brave front. Wow, it looks like some gathering in here." said Cagalli, looking at the crown sitting on the ground in her bedroom.

"Hey, you told us to come, you know." hissed Kyo bluntly, folding her arms, and straightening out her apron.

"See! You keep using that sarcastic, aggressive, hissing tone! Stop it! You make it sound as if we're not your friends at all! Why don't you just let down your defences and relax a bit, why don't you!" exclaimed Miriallia, throwing up her arms exasperatedly.

Kyo's furrowed eyebrows relaxed and her frozen blue eyes, now gave out a slight warm glow, although she still remained silent about her friend's opinion of her.

"Mirre's right, loosen up, will you? I know you better than anyone else, and if you're behaving this way because you think you're _different, because you're a co-ordinator_, I'll have you know that Kira is a co-ordinator as well, and so is Alex." remarked Cagalli knowingly, taking off her uniform, so she was just wearing a sleeveless shirt with a pair of shorts.

The Orb Princess sat down beside her blue-haired refugee, "And why are you, Mr. Alex Dino, behaving in such a bashful way today? In addition, you don't usually eat so slowly, so hurry up!"

"Wow Cagalli, you never told us Alex was a co-ordinator. You seem to know everything about him from head to toe. I'm not surprised you even know the colour of his underwear," teased Kira, laughing out aloud at his own statement.

"I certainly do not! And I'm not going to pull open his pants and look down, because I'm not eager to find out!" yelled Cagalli, waving a threatening fist at her brother.

"Kira! Don't make such crude statements, will you?" barked Miriallia harshly, smacking the brunette young man hard on the arm.

"Hit me if you want Cagalli, but are you sure you don't have a crush on Alex? I dare you to say that you don't like him one bit." said Kyo, giggling away madly like a 5 year old girl who just received a nice dolly from her parents.

"I will not admit such personal feelings to anyone," replied Cagalli firmly, folding her arms and looking away from everyone else.

"She'll probably say something like this. 'I don't like him at all, I LOVE HIM!'" squealed Kira, making his voice as high-pitched and girly as can be.

Athrun flinched slightly at Kira's statement, and nearly choked on his soup, although his actions went unnoticed by the others, who were gathered around him.

"I would not say that, you jerk!" roared Cagalli, lunging forward at her younger brunette brother, and wrestling him on the floor. However, Cagalli's conscience was questioning her. The blonde girl knew very well that she did seem to have developed a crush on her little blue-haired refugee, but she couldn't possibly be falling in love, could she?

"Hey, break it up! But you know what, all this noise and this little gathering has given me a notion. When was the last time we had a slumber party?" asked Kyo thoughtfully, biting her lip and thinking hard.

"Slumber party? Hello? Have you gone loony-cuckoo? When and where can we make that little party of yours come to reality?" questioned Kira, raising a disapproving eyebrow at the red headed girl, who looked insulted.

"If you think it's such a bad idea, then don't come if we throw a slumber party! You'll just be missing out on the beer, and the stupid games we could play, and all the teasing you could do." mocked Kyo, folding her arms and looking at Kira teasingly.

"Ah... I didn't say it was a bad idea, I just said it's nearly impossible to throw one!" replied Kira, defending himself against Kyo's statements.

"It's settled then, tonight, my room. It's the safest place, I can't risk bringing Alex all over just to get to the party venue." said Cagalli, turning to Athrun and smiling toothily at him. "I know the words 'slumber party' sound kind of girly, but it's really just a party that goes on throughout the night. It's really fun, you'll enjoy yourself."

"Yeah, only because you'll be here to please and tease him," muttered Kira under his breath, hoping his sister wouldn't have heard him, or he knew his head would go rolling.

"And I just heard that Lord Uzumi's going away on a business trip, which means most of the Orb management will be too busy sorting things out to patrol the corridors." said Miriallia excitedly, shooting Athrun a warm and welcoming smile.

"But Kisaka will be guarding my room door. Oh nevermind, I'll just tell him that I'm throwing a party for you guys for no right reason. But I'm thinking of dedicating it to Alex, since he is a newcomer here, and also a new friend. The party will just be called, 'New Friend Found'. Sounds lame, but who cares!" exclaimed Cagalli, laughing out aloud.

"That's so sweet, oh goodness look at the time! I'd better get going, you too Kyo, someone might find out that one of the handmaidens are missing." said Miriallia, darting toward the door with the red head and waving goodbye, before checking if the coast was clear and exitting the room.

"I've got better things to do than sit here and chit-chat, tata!" said Kira, getting to his feet, stretching and leaving the room, taking his own sweet time.

Realising it was a good time to ask, and since the thought was bugging him, he took a deep breath and voiced out his question.

"Don't scream at me for asking you this but, you don't like me, do you?" asked Athrun, mustering all his courage just to voice out one heartfelt question.

Cagalli blushed deeply, "You're not asking me this because you want to tell me off, if I tell you the truth, right?"

Athrun shook his head, before staring back down at his plate. If she did like him, all the more she would trust him, making it easier for him to slip away as one of the murder suspects, but what was really bugging him was that, he was starting to develop feelings for her as well.

"Ok fine, it's going to be hard for me to say this, but yes, I _do_ like you, Alex. However, I don't know if I should stop myself here, or go deeper since, my feelings may only be one-sided. And I want to know your answer as well." said Cagalli, looking away from him, and feeling a slight tinge of worry tug at her heartstrings.

Athrun felt sad for not just Cagalli, but himself as well. The reason he was at Orb, was because he was supposed to kill her in the end. But now that the both of them seemed to be planting themselves deeper into each other's lives, it would be heartbreaking to let go.

Knowing he could hide his feelings for the blonde girl no longer, he grabbed her forearm gently, pulled her a little closer and planted a soft, swift but meaningful kiss on her cheek. "You've got your answer," he said softly, before getting up and walking off to the bathroom.

_A/N I know, this chapter is probably the longest chapter I've written in all of my other fanfics, including this one. But don't hope for other chapters to be like this, it's only long because I had to squeeze the introductions of Kyo and Miriallia, and their conversation after that with this last part. Anyway, I hope you liked it, pls review! Sorry for spelling and gramatical errors!_


	5. Teasing & More Teasing

Chapter 5 Teasing & More Teasing

_A/N Heya, this chappie is pretty much all fun and games, teasing, stupid stuff, and all the usual things that teenagers do when they party out all night. And also, for those of you who think that Kyo is really very very extra, sorry, but she's always played quite an important role in all of my fanfics. Besides, Kyo will also become one of the girlfriends of a certain someone later on. Anyway, I must forewarn you that I might overdo this chapter, but I'll try not to veer off track. anyway, happy reading!_

"Oh yes, Kisaka! I'm having a little party session from 8 p.m. onwards, so it might get a little noisy, ok? If you can't sleep because of the noise, feel free to move into the lounge around the corner. So sorry you're not invited, it's a teenager thing." said the blonde Orb Princess, winking at her bodyguard before disappearing back into her bedroom and shutting the oak door.

"Are you sure it's ok to throw a party so late at night, people living around here might wonder what we're up to." said Athrun, looking out of the window, at a nearby block of apartments.

The slight zephyr blowing past the window set a tingling sensation on the cool skin of the blue-haired co-ordinator's face as he gazed dreamily out of the window. Athrun had been sitting on the window sill for the past quarter of an hour, and the nippy breeze had made his soft blue-hair a little windswept.

"Relax, Alex. I've already told Kisaka I'm throwing a little party, and if anyone has any questions or enquiries they can take it up with him. Besides, it's time you had some fun, you've been cooped up in here like a prisoner." said Cagalli, padding slowly across the carpeted floor toward the co-ordinator, before reaching up to stroke his cheek.

"Although I have to apologise that you still can't leave this room, throwing a little party to welcome you is the least I can do for you." advocated Cagalli, resting her head sideways on his shoulder, and enjoying the refreshing breeze, letting the cool air whip her face and run through her blonde hair.

Cagalli tilted her head to the left slightly to face her wall clock, which read the time as 7.47 p.m. Miriallia, Kira and Kyo would be arriving sooner or later, and Cagalli could just hope that Kisaka would let them in without interrogating them like some police officer on duty.

Cagalli sneezed lightly, her body quivering and quaking for a number of seconds before she sneezed once more, her nose turning a slight shade of pink.

Athrun hopped off the window sill and wrapped both arms around the blonde girl, cuddling her as his hands moved up and down her arms, feeling the goosebumps on her soft skin.

The feel of his warm hands caressing her arms, made Cagalli blush a brilliant shade of magenta, as she snuggled deeper into his embrace, letting his body heat keep her warm. She rested her head on his brawny chest, willing herself to listen to the rhythmic beat of his heart.

Athrun nuzzled her head gently, inhaling the scent of her hair as he did so. "You smell like flowers," he mumbled to her, slowly pressing little kisses on her head.

"Rose and chamomile, my organic shampoo. As much as I hate it, it suits my hair best." replied the blone Orb Princess bluntly, rolling her eyes at the thought of having to use a shampoo, that smelt like _flowers_.

Just then, there was a loud knock on the door, and before the duo standing by the window sill could pull themselves out of the romantic atmosphere they had set, the door quickly opened slightly, letting a brunette boy pass through the gap, and shut the door.

The brunette boy being Kira, spun around so quickly, obviously wanting to say something, but couldn't find his voice when his gaze fell upon his sister and the young man, whose arms were wrapped around her.

"Oh my goodness, so sorry, my dears. Please carry on, pretend not a soul had entered this room. Continue carressing each other, cuddling up close and kissing all over. I shall not be a distraction, and shall now take my leave." said Kira in the most high-pitched voice, sniggering as he did so, before curtsying and turning around in the most graceful way he could.

However, he felt a pillow hit him hard, and squarely in the back of his head. "We weren't doing anything mushy!" yelled Cagalli, striding up to his brother the moment Athrun had released her from his grasp.

"Oh _pur-lease_ sis, I saw with my very own eyes, what you two were doing. And mind you I don't need glasses, I have crystal clear eyesight, and I can keep on replaying what I saw in my mind! _Ooooooh! That's so sweet!"_ contradicted Kira, folding his arms and turning his last two sentences into a squeal.

Athrun still stood rooted to the spot, his face a brilliant shade of magenta, as he watched the blodne princess bicker with her brother, her face just as red as his. Athrun knew that even though Cagalli kept denying her feelings for him in front of others, he could very well feel the love every time she was near or alone with him.

However, the blue-haired co-ordinator suddenly felt something sink into the pit of his stomach. He had been sent to Orb to complete a mission, but now that he had fallen head over heels in love with his victim, how ever was he going to be able to complete the mission?

In three months, if he didn't return to PLANTs, his father would send someone or maybe even a few people, to come and check on him, or even finish the job for him if he didn't succeed. But he didn't want to kill Cagalli, neither did he want someone else to kill Cagalli.

Athrun loved her, and he knew that even though their relationship would somehow suffer because of the circumstances, there was no way he would let anyone or anything harm his Cagalli.

The door opened slightly once more, letting past two girls, one with auburn hair and another with long flowing red hair.

"Sorry we're late, I had to drag Kyo all the way back to her room a while ago to find something for her to wear. Can you believe she actually wanted to come in her uniform?" exclaimed Miriallia, looking at Kyo, who looked blunt.

"Mirre's got a point, if you came in your uniform, how would you be able to run, jump around and twist and bend all over?" asked Cagalli knowingly, grinning in a playful way at the stack of games she had taken out, one of which was 'Twister'.

"And you might think she has nothing better to wear than her uniform, but you should really take a look at her cupboard! It's filled with so many good things to wear! Some of which might even make a guy's eyes pop out if she wore them!" said Miriallia, bursting out laughing at the thought of the few dresses in Kyo's cupboard.

Kyo whacked Miriallia hard on the arm, "That's why I don't wear them! I don't want guys drooling and sucking up to me whenever I wear one of those horrendous things, people call dresses! In addition, you can have them if you like!"

"Aah, cut it out ladies! What Kyo's wearing now is good enough, I don't need to see any cleavage of fair slender legs tonight anyway." hissed Kira perversely, sniggering away at his statement.

"You can go and ogle at your _girlfriend_ and not me." snarled Kyo heatedly, and adjusting her white figure-hugging sleeveless shirt, and pulling her black tight-fitting track pants a little higher.

"Oh yes, before I forget. Do you know what I saw earlier?" snickered Kira, turning to Miriallia and Kyo, before shifting his gaze back to Athrun and Cagalli.

"Kira, I think I have an idea of what you saw, and if I'm right, I suggest you respect Alex and Cagalli's privacy!" barked Miriallia sternly, foldign her arms and rolling her eyes at Kira.

"And if you think what they were doing is gross or sick, when I see you do the same things with your girlfriend, I'll laugh till I die in front of you." spat Kyo curtly.

"Fine, be that way. It's not like a little teasing will kill them," said Kira, pouting his lips in such a childish way Miriallia giggled out aloud.

"Teasing won't kill them, but mind you it's their privacy. And teasing your sister may be ok, but have you thought of how Alex feels?" asked Miriallia, smiling toothily at Athrun, before returning her gaze to Kira.

"Why don't we just get on with the party? Kira can tease me all he likes, it doesn't really bother me." stated Athrun bluntly, before reverting to his usual quiet state.

"That's it, Alex. Warm up to us will you? Speak what you feel and think, don't be bashful." encouraged Kyo, before joining Cagalli on the floor, where the 'Twister' mat had been spread out.

"You're on your way," said Miriallia, winking playfully at him before trailing along after Kyo.

"Ok, Naturals aren't as bad as people at PLANTs make them sound." Athrun thought to himself, before shrugging to himself and sitting down on Cagalli's bed, watching the blonde bicker with her brother, this time over who would be the one to shout out the game commands.

"You're a _girl_! So you should be way more agile and flexible than I am! You play!" barked Kira, stomping his foot hard on the ground, though it didn't make much of a noise since the floor was, after all, carpeted.

"I know I'm a _girl_, and I don't need reminding, thank you! But I can't play 'Twister' today for a perfectly valid reason!" Cagalli argued back, moving her face a little closer to her brunette brother's.

"And may I know, what is that reason?" asked Athrun boldly, his voice suddenly finidng the courage to speak his mind, and talk whenever he liked, no matter who he was around him.

"Ugh! Since when did you, Mr. Alex Dino, learn and dare to challenge moi?" asked Cagalli, turning away from Kira, and shooting a fierce glare at the blue-haired young man, hands on her hips, eyes focused threateningly on him.

"Ah well, it's not that I _learnt_ to challenge you, I just felt like it. Besides, you said you had a reason, and I'm sure we'd all like to hear it." said Athrun smartly, folding his arms and looking eagerly back at the blonde Orb Princess.

"As much as I'd like to tell you, Alex, it's a girl's reason. So it'd be quite embarrassing to tell you and Kira," contradicted Cagalli arrogantly, looking away from Athrun and raising her head up high.

"Goodness, why do I have such a conceited sister? Besides, I'm sure you can tell me, Cagalli. I'm your brother, and even if it's stupid, I won't laugh." pleaded Kira, pouting cutely at his sister, his eyes growing as big as teacups.

"I think I know what Cagalli's talking about, and if I'm right, you'd better not laugh Kira, because it happens to all girls." said Miriallia, looking at Cagalli and raising an eyebrow at Cagalli, as though asking if what she had in mind was correct.

"Yep, and if you do laugh, I'll pound you to pulp, because you'll be indirectly laughing at Miriallia and _I. _And I don't like being laughed at," hissed Kyo threateningly, shooting Kira a penetrating stare.

"I might as well tell you, since not telling you won't make a difference anyway." sulked Cagalli, looking rather defeated. "Alright, I'm bleeding today, so I can't really do vigorous movements, and sit in odd positions."

"Oh, you've got your _period_!" exclaimed Kira, looking delighted.

"Yeah so? What d'you look so ecstatic about?" questioned Cagalli, picking up a nearby notebook and aiming it threateningly at her brunette brother, who was sniggering away.

"Don't know, it's just funny!" said Kira, giggling a little before bursting out into a fit of full blown laughter.

"Laugh all you like sonny boy! It's not like guys don't have similar problems! And it's worse for you guys, isn't it? It happens at night, and it can happen every night if the guy's really dirty and sick in the head." giggled Miriallia, her cheeks turning slightly pink.

"Oh yah, I remember when we used to share a room 3 years back, when we were 13, I saw Kira... hahahahahaha... I saw... him... hahahahahahahaha...hahahahahahahaha...I saw him... take off his... pants at night... to change his... hahahaha... underwear!" laughed Cagalli, doubling over onto her bed in laughter.

"He was probably dreaming about Ayumi Hamasaki or BoA!" squealed Miriallia, remembering the time when she entered Kira's room with Cagalli, to find dozens of posters of the two J-pop singers on his wall.

Both Kyo and Miriallia seemed to be laughing as hard as the blonde princess, and for some reason, although he too was a guy, Athrun couldn't help but laugh along with them. Not as hard though.

Kira's cheeks were burning red, and of all people to throw a cushion at, he threw one at Athrun, hitting the fellow co-ordinator squarely in the face.

"What're you laughing about? It's not like it doesn't happen to you! You've probably had a wet dream about my sister, anyway!" yelled Kira hotly, glaring at Athrun for laughing at him.

"Don't _hit_ him! What's he done to you!" exclaimed Cagalli, picking up the cushion and throwing back at her brother, who being a co-ordinator, dodged it expertly.

"Ooh, sticking up for him, are you? Alex and Cagalli, sitting in a tree, K-I-S-S, no wait, let me change it to F-U-C-K-I..." but before Kira could finish, Cagalli had pounced on him, and had her hands tightened around his neck, ready to strangle him to death.

"Kira! Mind your language!" barked Miriallia fiercely from the other end of the room.

Cagalli was close to succeeding in strangling her brother, when she felt someone grab her by the waist and tug her away from Kira, whose face was already turning purple.

"Cagalli, get a hold of yourself! He was only teasing you!" said Kyo, shaking Cagalli by the shoulders, when the blonde girl let out a yell in frustration.

"But he said Alex and I..." however, Kyo cut the blonde off half way.

"Who knows, when the both of you are really in love, you might really just cuddle up and get down to business one day." said Kyo, sniggering and moving far away from the blonde for fear that she might pumel her as well.

Athrun was standing right in front of Cagalli, not daring to move in case she decided to lunge out at him, for the slightest movement he made. However, staying put was a big mistake.

Kira threw the large beanback at Cagalli's back, causing her to fly forwards onto Athrun. The blue-haired co-ordinator landed on his back, the blonde girl on top of him, but the force of the beanbag hadn't stopped there, the blonde and blue-head's lips became joined in the frenzy.

For a moment, Athrun felt as though the floor beneath him had vanished, leaving him and Cagalli falling down and down. Cagalli seemed to have felt the same thing, as her grip tightened on the sides of his head.

Their lips remained fused in a soul-searing kiss, as even Cagalli didn't pull away, letting Athrun's tongue, which had found it's way into her mouth, explore the walls of her mouth.

Meanwhile, back in the real world, Kira was staring euphorically at what his little beanbag act had just done. Even Kyo and Miriallia looked half shocked and half ecstatic at what they were seeing.

For days they had been waiting for this to happen, it was so obvious that Cagalli liked the blue-head. The way she spoke of him, was like a mother praising and telling people about her son.

Finally, the canoodling duo felt themselves hit the ground once more as they broke free, taking in deep and large breaths of air.

"BLOODY HELL! THAT MUST'VE BEEN LIKE 17 SECONDS!" uttered Kira ecstatically, jumping about jovially and laughing like a mad man.

Realising that she had just kissed her crush, and that they had kissed in front of the others, Cagalli heaved the beanbag off her back and rolled off he blue-haired young man. Rolling till she felt her back hit the wall opposite her bed.

Athrun just lay there panting, and staring petrified up at the ceiling, his face blushing red hot at what he had just done.

"Let's go, these two lovebirds might want to continue form where they left off earlier." giggled Miriallia, dragging Kira out along after Kyo and shut the door behind them.

Athrun finally found the strength to get to his feet ad run to Cagalli's side, "I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to, it's just that I... I don't how to say this but I... I love..." however, his lips met with the blonde princess's again as she deliberately grabbed him by the collar and pulled him onto her.

As much as he knew he should be doing what he was doing now, the temptation was just too strong to resist.

Cagalli's hands had managed to pull off his shirt, and were now running up from his chest to his head, running her fingers through his thick blue hair.

"I love you too," mumbled Cagalli, in-between the fierce kisses.

_A/N There you go, pls review and I updated early, I know. Sorry for typo errors!_


	6. Found Out

Chapter 6 Found Out

_A/N Thank you to those who have supported me and this fanfic so far, I'm really grateful. Anyway, the story is slowly unfolding from this chapter onwards, it's only a few more chappies before the angst will start coming along. P.S The beginning of this chapter's a little horny, so those who do not like horny stuff, I advise you to skip to the later part of this chapter! Happy reading!_

Cagalli rolled over onto her stomach, her entire frame still shaking from the nirvana she had just experienced. Her entire back was sweat sheened, and she was panting hard, trying desperately to catch her breath. The blonde girl turned her head slightly to look at the clock, which read 3.32 a.m.

The Orb Princess grinned to herself as she remembered the hours of endless pleasure she and the young man beside her had just shared. Turning to him, she exclaimed, "You amazingly naughty, horny bastard!"

Cagalli whacked Athrun hard on his arm, as he turned to face her, nostrils dilating as he took in raspy breaths of air. The sides of his face were bathed in his perspiration, and like Cagalli's, his body was still shaking from the climax.

Once Athrun found that he had enough breath to speak he did so. "Hey, it's not... (pant pant)... my fault! You started it! (pant pant) If you hadn't heated me up so badly, (pant pant) we would both be sleeping on our own beds, right now!"

"Sorry, it's just that you're so adorably handsome, and even sexier without your clothes." teased Cagalli, nipping at his neck slightly, and licking his face.

"Don't start it again," mumbled Athrun, turning over on his side, so that his back was facing her. It was clear that the blue-haired co-ordinator was close to exhaustion, and he hadn't cooled off completely either. "Oh yes, you nasty little liar, you weren't having your period yesterday, were you?"

Cagalli giggled slightly, as she nuzzled his neck, urging him to turn back over, so she could talk to him. "Come on, Alex, I'm not going to start anything up, I just want to talk to you, and so what if I wasn't bleeding, it's not like anyone would find out unless I stripped, right?"

Sighing deeply, Athrun turned back over, lying on his back, and staring up at the ceiling. He stretched slightly, flexing his biceps before settling back down, his head lolling over onto his left to face the Orb Princess.

"I dare you to say you didn't have fun earlier," whispered Cagalli, cuddling up closer to Athrun, as he rolled over onto his side fully and wrapped his arms around her body.

"I wouldn't lie to you and say that." replied Athrun, only his emerald orbs visible to Cagalli in the darkness of the bedroom.

"You're amazing, you know that? But there's a side effect to what you did, my back aches now." remarked Cagalli, grinning naughtily at Athrun, who was busy nipping at her ears.

"Sorry princess, was I too active or violent with you? You asked for it anyway, actually, you were more like begging me." hissed Athrun, into Cagalli's ear, letting his hands run down her bare back.

"Don't call me that, Dino," snarled Cagalli, tossing her head around and biting Athrun playfully on the neck, making him fall back onto his back.

"You want more biting do you? Fine, I'll give you some lovebites." retorted Athrun, retaliating and pouncing on Cagalli, nearly flattening her like a pancake as he bit playfully at her neck, occassionally licking her erogenous zones, making her mew like a kitten.

"Are you up for another round?" questioned Cagalli, reaching down under the blanket and running a finger up at down Athrun's thigh, making him shudder slightly. The blue-haired co-ordinator replied by attacking her lips once more, feeling the tension rise within him.

_Morning: 7.25 a.m._

Cagalli's eyes fluttered open, as she squinted in the sun's rays. She looked over at her sleeping prince, and smiled to herself. The blonde girl kissed her prince gently on the forehead, hoping she wouldn't arouse him from his slumber.

The Orb Princess slowly pulled back the covers of her blanket, and put one leg off the bed, however, Athrun detected her movements and quickly threw his right leg over her and used his arms to pull her back close to him.

"Alex! It's already 7.26 a.m. I'm due for a meeting with my father, the entire Orb management and the council members later on!" whispered Cagalli, struggling to break free from the co-ordinator's tight grasp on her.

Realising the blue-haired young man didn't seem to have heard her, she whacked him hard on the back, causing him to jump in fright, nearly howling out in pain if Cagalli hadn't clamped her hand over his mouth.

Athrun released the blonde girl, and she got out of bed, pulling on her undergarments before heading off to the toilet. "Do the usual stuff, Alex, don't go anywhere beyond that door when I'm gone." said Cagalli, pointing at the bedroom door.

Athrun nodded toward her, before sliding off the bed himself, pulling on his underwear, shorts and t-shirt. Within minutes Cagalli was out of the bathroom, and Athrun slipped inside himself to freshen up.

However, when Athrun came out of the bathroom, he found Cagalli waiting for him on her bed. "Shouldn't you have left already?"

"Nah, I've still got time to take a slow walk to the meeting room." said Cagalli, standing up and moving over to her prince charming, before wrapping her arms around his neck and kissing him passionately.

Without warning the door flew open, revealing an angry Kisaka at the door. "I knew it! I knew it all along! You were hiding someone in here, an imposter! What's more, the imposter's a man! GUARDS!"

4 guards swarmed into the Orb Princess's bedroom and grabbed Athrun's arms and restrained him from breaking free. The blue-haired co-ordinator struggled, but to no avail, even a co-ordinator wouldn't be able to overpower four grown, masculine in physique, guards restraining him.

"Alex! Don't struggle, you'll be alright!" said Cagalli, the sound of her voice encouraging Athrun not to struggle and just follow orders for the meantime. Darn it, now that he was caught, would he be forced to reveal his true motive for being at Orb?

"Kisaka! What's the meaning of this! I'm warning you, don't hurt Alex, or I'll behead you personally!" hollered Cagalli, facing her bodyguard, who towered over her.

"Sticking up for him, are you? Is he your _boyfriend_? Nice kissing scene earlier," hissed Kisaka sarcastically, grabbing Cagalli roughly by the arm and dragging her off.

Athrun found himself being dragged into a large meeting room, and among the people gathered there, he spotted both Miriallia and Kyo, both girls staring at him apprehensively.

Cagalli was brought in a moment later, Uzumi Nara Athha was on his feet and staring at Cagalli and Athrun.

"Lord Uzumi, I found this young man in Cagalli's bedroom, and when I entered they were locking lips with each other." said Kisaka firmly, staring sideways at Cagalli, whose eyes were filled with tears of hatred and anger.

People in the meeting room started whispering and chit-chatting, some people saying, "Goodness, the princess was hiding an imposter?"

"Cagalli, if what Kisaka says is the truth, I'm highly disappointed in you. You've broken one of Orb's most severe rules of harbouring an intruder, within the premises of Ob, without permission." said Uzumi, staring down at his adoptive daughter, who was close to tears.

"Lord Uzumi, this man has been exposed to Orb's ideals and secrets, and we cannot let him go freely or our secrets will be exposed." stated Kisaka sternly, "This man either stays here, locked up in jail, or he _dies._"

Lord Uzumi remained silent, indicating that Kisaka's words were true, and all the guards raised their rifles and aimed them at Athrun, who looked serene and angry at the same time.

"THIS IS PREPOSTEROUS! YOU CAN'T SENTENCE A YOUNG MAN TO DEATH FOR SUCH A REASON!" shouted Kyo, catapulting to her feet and slamming her hand on the table in front of her.

"Miss Kyo Yamajika, Orb's number one female soldier, never did I expect you to stand up for an imposter." said Kisaka hatedly, glaring at the red-headed girl, wo tongues of flame burning in his eyes.

"Kisaka, you may be of high status, being Miss Cagalli's bodyguard, but it doesn't mean I have to agree with you. A man with high status isn't always wise in what he says or does, and this time, I'm against what you think." replied Kyo smartly, glaring at Kisaka, before shifting her gaze to Lord Uzumi for an answer.

"Such a statement only comes from a person with a heart of compassion and justice, well done, Miss Kyo." complemented Uzumi Nara Athha before looking down at Athrun.

"Young man, what is your name?" asked Uzumi kindly, looking serenely down at Athrun, who still remained wary to the guards around him.

"Alex Dino, sir. I have been exiled from my country, and while flying, my shuttle crashed and sunk in the ocean. When I was seeking refuge in a nearby forest, Miss Cagalli found me and took me in. I seek your forgiveness, sir." explained Athrun, bowing politely to the Lion of Orb.

"Very well, Mr. Alex Dino. Now, Cagalli, what's this I hear from Kisaka about you _kissing_ Mr. Dino?" questioned Uzumi, raising a disapproving eyebrow at Cagalli, who seemed humiliated at the fact that her father was asking her about something like this in front of the entire Orb council.

"Forgive me, Lord Uzumi. But being a close friend of Cagalli's and your personal secretary, I cannot hide this any longer. Miss Kyo and I knew about Mr. Alex, but kept him a secret, and it seems that during the time that Mr. Alex has sought refuge in Miss Cagalli's room, both parties seemed to have developed a mutual and close bond with each other. Oh yes, one more thing, Mr. Alex, is also a co-ordinator." explained Miriallia, and although her explanation seemed long-winded, every word of it was true.

Miriallia's last statement seemed to have set the people in the meeting room whispering and engaging in discussions with one another.

"I see, thank you, Miss Miriallia. Is there anyone here who knew about Mr. Alex Dino before this day?" asked the Lion of Orb, looking around the meeting room for anyone who had raised their hands or gotten to their feet.

In a corner of the meeting room, a brunette young man stood up and bowed with respect. "I did, Lord Uzumi. But like Miss Kyo and Miss Miriallia, I kept the matter under wraps."

"Is there no one else? Very well, the three of you, Miss Kyo, Miss Miriallia, and Mr. Kira, will receive apropriate discipline for breaking one of Orb's most severe rules. As a punishment, you will clean the public toilets on all floors of this building for a month. As for Mr. Alex Dino, and _Cagalli_, I want to see you in my office immediately." instructed Lord Uzumi, sounding more like a school teacher rather than ruler of Orb. "Oh yes, this meeting is canceled until further notice."

Council members and other people started filing out of the meeting room in neat rows, chattering noisily as they did so.

Lord Uzumi instructed the guards to release Athrun, and to Cagalli's relief, also told Kisaka that he would be promoted to being his personal advisor, and that Kyo would take over being Cagalli's bodyguard.

Cagalli walked out of the meeting room briskly, Athrun trailing along behind. Kyo and Miriallia caught up with the duo when they exitted by the side entrance.

"Cleaning toilets? That's our punishment? I'd rather be demoted to being a handmaiden!" exclaimed Miriallia, looking as if her entire world had just come crashing down on her.

"Oh yes, I heard father tell Kisaka that you're my bodyguard now, Kyo." muttered Cagalli softly, without looking back at the red headed girl, who looking as though she was mulling over some unknown matter.

Once they were outside Lord Uzumi's office, Miriallia turned right and entered her own, while Kyo, Cagalli and Athrun entered the Lion of Orb's office. Lord Uzumi gestured for Cagalli and Athrun to sit down, while Kyo stood by the door in a corner, doing her duty as a bodyguard.

"Right, now let's get started. Cagalli, I need not remind you that even though you are Orb's Princess and my successor, you are still obliged to follow the rules. Why didn't you approach me for help when you found Mr. Dino? I would've granted you permission to let him stay here." said Lord Uzumi, using his hand to lift Cagalli's chin.

"I didn't think you'd allow it, besides, his story sounded pitiful enough, why put him through all the trouble?" mumbled Cagalli softly, still not looking at her father who sighed deeply before continuing.

"And what's this about you _kissing_ Mr. Dino?" asked Uzumi Nara Athha, raising an eyebrow at both Cagalli and Athrun, whose cheeks were as red as beetroots.

"Father, I'd rather not talk about that. Sorry if I didn't ask for your approval before kissing someone." hissed Cagalli hotly, folding her arms and leaning back in her chair.

Lord Uzumi laughed merrily, "Cagalli, if you think I'm going to scold you for _kissing_ Mr. Dino, you've got the wrong idea. I just want to know if you really _love _him. All these years, I've never heard or seen you talk about or ogle at any young man until now. I should be happy, shouldn't I? My daughter's now acting more like a girl."

Cagalli looked stunned at her father's words, as what he had just said was totally absurd. Athrun's face was still flushed, and he was looking away from Lord Uzumi and was staring at a ladybug which was now making its way across the room.

Even Kyo was giggling away in her corner, trying to hold back her laughter, her eyes swimming with tears, as she was trying hard not to laugh.

"Father, you're not serious are you? Tell me you always thought I was abnormal and had imbalanced hormone levels because I never acted like a girl, or went ga ga over a guy?" asked Cagalli, her expression lightening a little, however looking much happier than before.

"Not really, but you were really boyish, even when you were a child. You've got good taste, Cagalli. Mr. Dino is very handsome, blue hair, fair alabaster skin, and my my, emerald eyes." said Lord Uzumi grinning.

"Kind of reminds me of myself, back in those olden days." sighed Lord Uzumi, twirling his goatee between his fingers.

"Father, don't insult Alex, please." said Cagalli bluntly, looking at her father, who seemed to be thinking of the past, as he was staring into space and smiling for no right reason.

"Lord Uzumi, pardon me for interrupting, but stop talking like that, please. You sound like an old lady trying to play matchmaker." sniggered Kyo, still trying to hold back her laughter.

"Oh well, yes yes. Mr. Dino, you can have the room around the corner from Cagalli's. That room's actually a room for guests, which you are, of course." smiled Lord Uzumi merrily, "You're dismissed."

Athrun was the first to get out of his chair and exit the Lion of Orb's office. Things were finally settling in, he didn't have to worry about being caught in Orb now. It seemed like he was finally free of all worries, when the thought of his mission came back to him.

It had been merely less than a week, and he had fallen head over heels in love with the princess of Orb. How the heck was he supposed to complete the mission his father had sent him to Orb for now? Athrun loved Cagalli a great deal, and just the thought of having to kill her sent a pang of guilt and pain across his chest.

The blue-haired co-ordinator didn't want to hurt her, much less kill her, but in three months, someone from PLANTs would be coming down to either check on him, or finish the job for him.

No, Athrun wouldn't kill her, neither would he let anyone lay a finger on Cagalli. If someone did come down from PLANTs to finish the job for him, that person would have to kill him first.

The charming blue-haired young man was busted out of his thoughts, when he felt his beloved princess grab onto his forearm, and rest her head on his shoulder. There was nothing she should hide from him, or him from her now, since Athrun had already went to bed with her the night before, and engaged in several hours of pure love and endless pleasure.

"Goodness, I think I'm going to get some eyedrops later on. I don't think my eyes can stand seeing anymore of you two lovebirds." giggled Kyo, watching Cagalli kiss Athrun before sending him off to his assigned bedroom.

Cagalli shot her friend a fierce glare, that said, "Well you'll have to put up with it, missy."

"Jealous are you? Go get yourself a young man to kiss and cuddle with then. There're so many of them queueing up in a line, just to get a kiss from you." remarked Miriallia, walking down the corridor toward the attractive red head and greeting the blonde princess jovially.

"So sorry, but none of those blokes queueing up in a line are worth my attention and affection. They're just a bunch of airheads, who only look at a girl's outer beauty." hissed Kyo, folding her arms and resuming her duty as Cagalli's bodyguard.

"Why don't you two come in? I could use a few people to chat with." said Cagalli inviting Kyo and Miriallia into her room.

"And Kyo, you're supposed to come in, you're my bodyguard." stated Cagalli bluntly, grinning at the attractive red headed girl who had taken off her handmaiden uniform, and was now weaing a simple black shirt with bell-bottomed navy jeans.

"Oh sorry, I didn't know. Kisaka never used to come into your room," replied Kyo, busy examining the display case in a corner of Cagalli's bedroom, containing little photoframes, containing photos of Lord Uzumi and Cagalli, in their younger days.

"That's because of two reasons. One, he's a guy. Two, I never really liked him at all." explained Cagalli, folding her arms and looking at her reflection through the mirror.

"Cagalli, which pair of shorts did you wear to sleep last night?" asked Miriallia curiously, sitting on Cagalli's bed, and watching Cagalli dig through her drawer, obviously looking for her hairbrush, as her hair was in a complete mess.

"This pair," replied Cagalli, throwing the pair of black sports shorts in Miriallia's direction without looking at her, still searching frantically for her hairbrush.

Miriallia had a fairly good reason for questioning Cagalli, as there was a bloodstain on the bed, and it looked as if the blood had soaked through the covers, meaning the blood obviously had direct contact with the bedsheet.

Miriallia examined ever part of Cagalli's shorts before exclaiming, "That's not possible! How can your bed have a stain, but your shorts be as clean as if you never wore it!"

Cagalli paused in her tracks, oh dear. Miriallia had found out about last night, she was such an airhead, why didn't she change the bedsheet this morning before leaving her room?

"Cagalli, you didn't, _you know_, with Alex, did you? I mean, you didn't really do _'it'_, wth him, right?" asked Miriallia, her voice shaking madly, half eager and half shocked at the same time.

"It's no use lying, is it?" said Cagalli, blushing slightly, and sitting on the floor, feeling rather defeated. She hadn't planned on telling anyone she had slept with her prince charming, but it seemed that she had allowed people to find out at the same time.

"Oh my goodness, to think I thought you _kissing_ him was bad enough." remarked Kyo, her hand clamped over her mouth, and her eyes as wide as teacups.

"Aren't the both of you moving, err, rather _fast_?" asked Miriallia, throwing the shorts back at Cagalli, who caught it expertly, probably because she had plenty of practice whenever Kira threw something at her.

"I don't know why. All of a sudden, I've just fallen so much in love with him. He's just _so_ handsome, and those emerald eyes of his are just _gorgeous_. He's_ irresistible_! But anyway, what happened last night was my fault. If I hadn't started touching and caressing him, he probably might have been able to prevent himself from losing total control." explained Cagalli, sighing and dreaming of her prince charming once more, leaving her two friends staring at her and wondering if she was really alright.

_A/N There you go, another chappie up! Once again, sorry for typo errors! I'm too lazy to check my work, haha! **In the next chapter, find out how Athrun and Cagalli's little visit to the beach goes, along with Kira, Miriallia and Kyo, who have become the duo's close friends. Also, find out who are the three unexpected visitors from PLANTs. **Anyway, thanks for reading, and pls review!_


	7. Uexpected Visitors

Chapter 7 Unexpected Visitors

_A/N Here's another chappie, I'll be updating at least once or twice a week now, because I'm trying to finish the fanfic by the end of Decemeber. I'm migrating to New Zealand in January 2006, so I'll have to clear the house and pack stuff, and all. Anyway, here's another chapter for you to pamper your eyes and imaginations with, enjoy!_

Cagalli had been so busy for the rest of the day, that by the time she had finished all her work, and attended all her appointments, it was close to midnight. The blonde Orb Princess, slumped down onto her bed, disappointed that she'd have to wait till the next day to visit her prince charming. It had only been close to a day, and how Cagalli missed that gentle and handsome face of his.

"Those emerald orbs, fair alabaster skin, his warm touch..." however, the blonde girl was busted out of her thoughts by a hard whack on the arm by her newly assigned bodyguard, Kyo Yamajika.

"I've been calling you for ages! Are you deaf or something? Go clean your ears! Or maybe you were dreaming of Mr. Alex Dino." hissed Kyo, shaking her head and pursing her lips at the Orb Princess, who just snorted and stood up to full height in front of her bed.

"So, what were you calling me for? You've got my attention now, so shoot, I'm all ears." retorted Cagalli, folding her arms and raising a questioning eyebrow at Kyo, who grunted and dumped the bag containing her belongings in a corner.

"I met Miriallia earlier, she asked me to ask you if you were free tomorrow. She said that if you were, maybe you'd like to go to the beach with her and Kira, and maybe bring Alex along as well. She also stated that she's actually free for the next two days as Lord Uzumi's going out for a business trip." advocated Kyo, finishing off what she had to say and folding her arms neatly across her chest.

Cagalli nearly choked over her own saliva, "She's going to the beach with _Kira_?" asked Cagalli, looking astounded at Kyo, who nodded in reply, before settling herself into a nearby plastic chair.

"Yeah, she said so herself. What's the big deal anyway? It's not the first time she's brought Kira along to the beach with her. She's done it loads of times! Apparently, she likes to play with him there, throwing stones at each other and bickering about political stuff." explained Kyo, looking at Cagalli's astounded face, and nearly wanting to laugh out loud.

"Are you sure they don't do anything else?" questioned Cagalli, inching her face closer to Kyo's and staring at her eye to eye.

"Look Cagalli, they're just friends, really. When they go to the beach, they bicker much more than they talk. Basically, they just go there to browbeat each other. Both trying to outdo each other in stuff like throwing rocks out into the sea, stuff like that." reassured Kyo, pouring herself a glass of water from a nearby water flask.

"It better be just that, can't imagine Miriallia dating my little bro, eew." shuddered Cagalli, scratching the back of her neck before proceeding to the bathroom to change out of her uniform.

"Cagalli, wait! Am I going to sleep on this mattress?" asked Kyo, pointing at the very same mattress that Athrun had slept on for the past several days, looking a little hesitant and unwilling.

"Yeah, but if you don't want to sleep on it because Alex slept on it, by all means take my bed. I'd be more than happy to sleep on that mattress, it's got Alex's scent on it." grinned Cagalli cheekily, before closing the bathroom door behind her.

"Eew. Do all girls act like that when they're crazy over a boy? This is just ridiculous." Kyo muttered under her breath before standing behind the cupboard and changing into more informal clothes, like a shirt and a pair of shorts.

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"RIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIINNNNNNGG!" Cagalli's alarm clock went off, it's shrill cry bouncing off the four walls of the room and echoing throughout the room. The shrieking device was soon whisked off it's owner's bedside table and thrown directly at the concrete wall ahead of it.

"Get up already! It's 8.45 a.m! In addition, if you've forgotten you're supposed to be going to the beach with Mirre and Kira!" said Kyo, shaking Cagalli roughly in attempt to awaken the blonde princess from her slumber. However, no matter how hard the redheaded girl tried to arouse the Orb Princess, she remained stubbornly asleep. Until finally, the female bodyguard thought of a statement, that very well might send the blonde girl tumbling out of bed and ready to greet a new day.

Fodling her arms, Kyo sat down on the edge of Cagalli's bed and sighed loudly. "Oh, it's just so tragic. A very charming prince is waiting for his one true love to greet him and take him to the beach, but his princess would rather sleep on like a pig. It's just so heart-rending."

Within moments of finishing her sentence, Cagalli sat bolt upright looking wide awake and raring to start her day. "Ok, what time is it? Wait for me, I'll go freshen up! Oh yes, if Miriallia's pops by, tell her to make herself comfortable! Oh yes, do me a favour and go and fetch Alex! He should be awake by now, he usually wakes up automatically by himself at around seven-plus, eight!"

The blodne princess grabbed a tight-fitting, sports sleeveless shirt, and a pair of black sports shorts, before darting into the bathroom and shutting the door, or more like slamming it.

"Oh well, that did it. See I'm so smart," Kyo silently praised herself, before she heard a loud knock on the door and went to answer it. Sure enough, Miriallia peered in, Kira following along behind her. The duo popped into in Orb Princess's room and heard Kyo's explanation before settling themselves down.

"Oh, before I forget! Cagalli asked me to fetch her darling _prince charming _and _boyfriend_ for her!" exclaiemd Kyo, darting off Cagalli's bed and out the bedroom door, swerving tightly round the corner before knocking loudly on the first door she came to.

The gentle and serene face of the blue-haired co-ordinator greeted Kyo, as she stood by the doorway. "Cagalli would like you to come over to her bedroom now, if possible. We're all going to the beach, Miriallia, Kira, Cagalli, you and I."

"Roger that. I'll be there once I find something better to wear," replied Athrun, grinning cheerily before closing the door gently.

Kyo returned to Cagalli's bedroom to find the blonde princess already out of the bathroom, and brushing her thick blonde hair. The sun's rays set a radiant glow to Cagalli's cheeks, and the pinkish colour in them was just a bonus.

"Where's Alex?" asked Cagalli, sounding rather concerned, although her gaze remained glued to her dresser-top mirror, as she brushed her hair and straightened out her sleevless shirt.

"Don't worry, he'll be here sooner or later. He said he just needed to find something better to wear. I did tell him we'd be going to the beach, so he's not going to turn up in a tuxedo or in a formal shirt and jeans." advocated Kyo, she herself, wearing something like Cagalli, only she was wearing a cap-sleeved shirt.

A loud knock erupted from the door, before Athrun poked his head in and smiled politely.

"There you are! We've been waiting." said Cagalli, jogging up to him and hugging the blue-haired young man tight, before giving him a passionate kiss on the lips.

Kira could only silently pretend to wretch, as he watched his elder sister _smooch_ her boyfriend, whom he thought, wasn't much of a big deal.

"Now that we're all here, can we all get going? I want to do some tanning, and I've brought along some buns for breakfast." said Miriallia chirpily, holding up a picnic basket for the others to see.

"Ok, let's go! Adios!" exclaimed Kira, getting up and heading off and out of the bedroom doorway.

The sun was fully up in the innocent blue sky, casting a shimmering sheen on the crystal clear blue waters of the beach, it's waves rolling up on the beach, and flowing back out again.

The beach was somehow, unusually clean and the sand felt warm under Athrun's feet, as he walked up to a shady spot under a coconut tree, hand in hand with Cagalli. Miriallia spread out a large beach mat, and began laying out all the things.

Kira pulled off his shirt before running into a wave and diving in head first, he emerged seconds later shaking his hair dry and taking in a large breath of air. "Hey! It's hot out there, but the water's cool enough to prevent you from getting a sunburn!"

"Do you want to swim? I'll swim if you do," said Miriallia, turning to Kyo, who was sitting beside her on the beach mate and gazing out into the horizon.

"Tsk, you're in more danger in the water with Kira, than you are with a shark. That guy will wrestle with you underwater!" exclaimed Kyo, shaking her head. "But then again, the cool water looks so tempting." Kyo added, looking at Miriallia before both girls pulled off their tops and ran toward the sea in their bikini tops.

"Hey, why don't you two lovebirds give all the kissing a break and come join us!" shouted Kira from the water, looking at Cagalli and Athrun who were cuddled in each other's arms, and sitting on the beach mat.

Athrun turned to Cagalli, looking naughtily and impishly at Cagalli, before pulling off his shirt, taking Cagalli bridal-style in his arms and running down into the water, before throwing the blonde girl in before him.

However, that was a mighty BIG mistake. Cagalli broke the water's surface spluttering and coughing, before throwing her arms around Athrun's neck, and giving him a nice whack on the head.

"I... can't swim... you IDIOT!" yelled Cagalli, her hands still wrapped tightly around her blue-haired boyfriend's neck, as she spluttered and coughed a little more.

"Sorry, I didn't know," retorted Athrun, rubbing the back of his head with his hand, and wincing slightly at the pain.

"Cagalli, why don't you get off Alex's back. Your feet can touch the sandy bottom, see, we're all standing. Besides, if you do get swept out further by a wave, we'll all come to your rescue." reassured Miriallia knowingly, smiling toothily at the blonde girl, who hesitantly and reluctantly lowered herself into the cool water, though still clinging on tightly to Athrun's arm.

"Gosh, this feels so good. It's been a long time since I've hit the beach waves." muttered Kyo, floating in the water on her back, and enjoying the feeling of the cool water evaporating off the surface of her face.

"Hey, there're little fish swimming around us! And goodness, they're so colourful, and they're beautiful!" exclaimed Miriallia, putting her head under water to look at the tiny fishes swimming around their legs.

"Can we get out of the water? I don't like it, and the waves make me feel as though I'm being pulled further out bit by bit." said Cagalli, shuddering slightly, and clinging tighter onto Athrun's arm, as he hugged her close to reassure her.

"Yeah, the waves are getting a little rougher, and I don't feel too safe either. I've heard of sharks being washed in by waves." stated Miriallia, already starting to head back to shore with Kyo.

"_Sharks_? EEEEEEEK!" screamed Cagalli, when Kira suddenly popped up from under the water in front of her, with something that looked like a dead coral. The brunette young man snickered loudly before diving back under the water's surface and swimming swiftly back to shore.

Due to her phobia of water, Cagalli managed to persuade her prince charming to piggy-back her back to shore. The blonde girl clung tightly to Athrun's neck, as he waded back to the beach, where the trio of their friends awaited.

The two girls seemed to have busied themselves by building little sand castles and digging through the white, moist sand.

"Ugh, there's something in here, it's hard. Feels like it's made of wood," remarked Miriallia, digging deeper into the pit she had made in the sand, and with Kyo's help, pulling up a sandy object shaped somewhat like an arrowhead.

Using nimble fingers, Miriallia dusted the sand off the object to get a better look at it. It wasn't long before the auburn-haired girl realised that it was a boomerang.

Athrun and Cagalli had just arrived back at shore, and certainly, by the expression on the Orb Princess's face, anyone could've told that she was just glad to feel the sand beneath her feet once more.

"Hey sis!" yelled Kira, taking the boomerang from Miriallia and throwing it expertly in Cagalli's direction. The blonde girl dodged the boomerang by ducking down low, however, to both Kira and the others' surprise, the boomerang didn't return.

"That's weird, maybe it got stuck in a coconut tree or something." said Cagalli, turning around and scanning the vicinity of the beach behind her.

"It can't be, we would've heard the boomerang hit the tree if it did get stuck." said Athrun, looking around the sandy territory and looking up ahead at the grassy terrain behind the seaside, for any sign of the wooden object.

Not long after, the bunch gasped slightly when they saw one of the Orb management officials coming toward them with three people behind him. One, a young woman with long flowing pink hair, and behind her were two young men, one with platinum blonde hair and another with tanned skin, and wavy blonde hair.

Athrun's eyes widened in horror. His father did say THREE months, but it was barely even two weeks, and there wad Lacus Clyne, Yzak Jule and Dearka Elthman, walking up the ebach toward them.

"Mr. Dino, we've got visitors for you. A handmaiden saw you heading down to the seaside earlier, so I brought these visitors here to see you." said the Orb official, before bowing respectfully and taking his leave.

Miriallia, Kyo, Kira and Cagalli seemed equally stoned as Athrun, watching the three visitors before them. Without warning, the pink-haired girl sprung forward and threw her arms around Athrun's neck, not minding the fact that he was indeed, wet.

"Excuse me, who are you?" asked Cagalli defensively, clearly not liking the sight of an intruder hugging her boyfriend.

"Pardon us, this is Miss Lacus Clyne, Mr. Athrun Zala's fiancee. I'm Dearka Elthman, and this is my partner, Yzak Jule. We're just guarding Miss Clyne." explained the intruder with wavy blonde hair, and copper-tone skin.

"What in the world are you talking about and, who the hell is Mr. Athrun Zala?" asked Cagalli heatedly, glaring ferociously at the three intruders.

Athrun was looking panicky at Dearka, Yzak and Lacus. Shit, his plan, he'd be exposed to Cagalli and the rest if any one of his friends were to blab it all out. Then again, Yak and Dearka weren't here to finish the job, were they? If they were, Athrun had certainly not been expecting it.

"Well, it's time we enlighten you, Cagalli Yula Athha, Princess of Orb." hissed Yzak stepping forward, and standing face to face with Athrun. "You're not doing a very good job, are you, Zala? I don't understand why your father put you up to the job, you don't look fit enough accomplish it."

"Shut up, you asshole! Just carry on with what you want to say, and stop beating round the bush. Besides, you don't look that herculean yourself." barked Kyo, stepping front of Cagalli, and looking ready to fight the platinum blonde one on one.

"You..." spat Yzak, however, he found himself being held back by Dearka.

"Right, like Yzak was saying, it's time you know this guy's true identity." said Dearka walking round Athrun, who still had Lacus standing beside him, holding on to his forearm.

Kira couldn't help but stare at the pretty and sweet looking girl, who claimed her identity to be by the name of, Lacus Clyne. She had fair skin, and intoxicating blue eyes, and she looked ever so virginal and innocent.

"This guy, whatever name he has given you to be his, is all a sham. He is Athrun Zala, son of the Chairman of PLANTs. He was actually sent here on a mission, involving having to assassinate someone. Although I can see that instead of trying to complete his task of assassinating the target, he seems to have fallen in love with her instead." said Dearka, his gaze shifting swiftly to Cagalli, who stepped back slightly, feeling Kira inch closer to her.

"Yes my dear, Princess. He's here to _kill_ you," hissed Yzak, raising a gun at Cagalli, and loading it, before resting his index finger on the trigger.

"Yzak, we're just explaining the truth to them! What're you doing, lower the gun! I came here to stop all this!" exclaimed Lacus, her voice high-pitched but sounding fierce and firm.

Athrun stepped backward, standing protectively in front of Cagalli, who seemed doubtful of whether to trust him or not. Kyo stepped in-between Athrun and Yzak, looking from one young man to the other.

"I don't know who I should fight. Should I fight against you, Athrun Zala, or you Yzak Jule. Both of you are supposed to be on the same side, however, I can see one party has betrayed his team." said Kyo, turning to look Athrun, who looked stern and worried at the same time. "On the other hand, you could be just feigning your betrayal, and could still be working hand in hand with these imposters."

"If you want to lay a single finger on Cagalli, you'll have to come through me first." hissed Athrun fiercely, a tint of sarcasm in his voice, as he spread his arms out protectively in front of Cagalli.

"Shut up, _Athrun. _I don't need you to potect me, I don't trust you anymore. You've been lying to me about everything right from the start, how would I know if your love was all a sham as well?" asked Cagalli, her eyes welling up with tears as she gazed up at Athrun, feeling her heart on the brink of shattering to pieces. Turning around she fled as fast as she could, along with Kira and Miriallia.

Lacus looked worried as she surveyed the current situation.

Just then, Yzak raised a gun, and locked onto Cagalli. Athrun's eyes widened, but before he could react he heard the gun fire, however, the shot didn't hit Cagalli. Instead, someone else was lying on the sandy ground, hands clutching her side.

It turned out Kyo had flung herself at Yzak the moment he raised the gun, and he had fired a second later, sending the bullet penetrating through Kyo instead.

Kyo's blood spread onto the sand, as she lay there groaning slightly, and feeling tears come to her eyes as she tried to withstand the pain.

"Yzak Jule! The reason I came here was to stop Athrun from killing the Orb Princess! Why did you try to kill her? And instead of killing her, you hurt someone else!" exclaimed Lacus, her voice becoming stern and horrified, as she fell to her knees beside Kyo.

Yzak himself seemed to have realised his mistake, and he threw the gun on the ground before storming off. Dearka trailing along behind him.

"We've got to get her to somewhere with medical facilities." said Lacus, frantically trying to stump the bloodflow with her hands. Athrun nodded at her before lifting Kyo into his arms and carrying her off in the direction of the Athha house.

_A/N Ok, I know there are some ppl out there who really hate Kyo, because she's an OC, but pls bear with her. Besides, after what happened in this chapter, I won't say whether you'll get to see her again, but I think some of you know the answer to that already. Sorry for typo errors! Anyway, here's another chappie, I hope you enjoyed it! _

_**In the next chapter: Cagalli seems traumatic at the shocking revelation of truth, and how will she react when Athrun confronts her once more? In addition, since Lacus, Dearka and Yzak have been accepted by the Orb management to stay at Orb, how will things go about, will love start blossoming between the characters? And will Kyo live to see another day?**_


	8. Trust Or Betrayal

Chapter 8 Trust Or Betrayal

_A/N Ok, I know the chapter title sounds like the one from "Rurouni Kenshin" but do not be mistakened, it's not the same. Thank you to those who reviewed in the last chapter, really appreciative! **Also, many of you might be wondering how Lacus,Yzak and Dearka had been accepted into Orb so easily, well, pardon me for not explaining. The reason is because in this chapter, I was thinking of writing out the part where Lacus and Kira gave a full explanation to the Orb management about their motives for being at Orb, and although they had a hard time accepting them, especiallyYzak, they still let him in. However, the security would be keeping a close eye on them, especially Yzak.** Sorry for making this factor so unclear, I'll strive harder to be abetter author, rest assured! Happy reading! _

"I don't believe this, I don't want to believe it. I don't understand. Why?" Cagalli muttered, staring blankly and stoned into space, as her words of confusion spouted from in-between her rosette lips. Her blonde hair, was in a complete mess, as she had been pulling her hair continuously out of frustration earlier on.

"Cagalli, you heard and saw _Athrun's_ reaction earlier when those imposters confronted us. He stood up to defend you, to protect you. I don't doubt Mr. Dearka's explanation about Athrun coming here on a mission actually to kill you, but the fact is, he's never done so much as break your nail so far. I don't know why, but something tells me that Athrun does truly love you." said Miriallia, putting a comforting and encouraging arm around Cagalli.

"I don't know what to do, maybe Kira was right to be suspicious of him at first. I don't know," mumbled Cagalli, still looking stoned and blur.

"No, Cagalli! Athrun does..." however, before the auburn-haired girl could carry on with what she had wanted to say, Kira turned up at Cagalli's bedroom door, the girl, known as Lacus Clyne, standing behind him.

"Yes, Athrun does love you, Miss Cagalli. Nevermind that I'm his fiancee, our engagement was all arranged. Truthfully, the both of us are just nothing more than good friends. What matters is that it is _you_, Miss Cagalli, that he loves." explained the pink-haired girl, whose face was filled with worry. "So stop doubting him already, that's all I have to say. Mr. Kira here, has more important news to tell you."

"Yes, thank you, Miss Lacus. Mirre, Cagalli! Kyo's wounded, she got shot earlier when she lunged at that asshole, Yzak Jule. He was targetting Cagalli, but Kyo got in the way!" exclaimed Kira frantically, looking at Miriallia and Cagalli. "The doctor says she's lost a lot of blood, and he's not sure if she will make it!"

Miriallia catapulted to her feet, and Cagalli seemed to have been busted out of the trance she was in earlier. Both girls were on their feet looking intimidated and horrified.

"Where's she now?" asked Miriallia, looking frantically and perturbed at Kira, who gestured to Mirre and Cagalli to follow him as he led the way to the medical unit. Miriallia grabbed Cagalli's arm and dragged her along.

Cagalli's attention was drawn to Kira's left hand, in which he was holding another person's hand, and to the blonde's utter surprise, the hand belonged to Miss Lacus! Goodness, was Kira aware of his actions at all?

Within seconds, they reached the entrance of the medical unit, however, the door was locked as doctors had begun operating on Kyo to remove the bullet. Outside the medical unit in thw waiting area, sat a depressed looking Athrun and his two friends from PLANTs, Dearka and Yzak.

Dearka and Yzak seemed to be bickering loudly over some unknown matter, which Kira, Miriallia and Cagalli didn't seem eager to find out about.

"I dare you to apologise to her when she comes round!" barked Dearka, grinning at Yzak who looked utterly pissed and unmoved by what had just happened.

"Fat hope, pal! Who asked her to get in the way? I didn't!" Yzak yelled back, folding his arms across his lean chest and glaring into space.

"You know, Yzak, it's only right you apologise. You shouldn't do so because Dearka dared you to, after all it was you who fired the bullet that hit Miss Kyo." said Lacus knowingly, looking worried and anxious.

"If he doesn't want to apologise, so be it! We're not even sure if she might make it!" said Miriallia, her voice shaking uncontrollably, as her eyes welled up with tears.

Dearka Elthman seemed to find seeing this certain auburn-haired girl cry, really painful and hard to bear. Oh, but why the hell did he care anyway? It was her problem. But then again, he still found it hard to stand, watching her cry.

Athrun who was still sitting on the far end on the row of chairs in the waiting area, seemed to be taking quick glances at Cagalli out of the corner of his eye. She looked equally worried as Miriallia, wringing her hands anxiously, waiting for the operation to end and hear some news from the doctor, and not just any news, but _good_ news.

"What're you looking at? After what's been revealed about yourself, you still have to cheek to look at Cagalli!" exclaimed Kira, looking fiercely at Athrun, who quickly turned away reproachfully.

"Don't be so harsh on him. Like I said earlier, he does love Miss Cagalli. Or I think he would've killed her by now. His love for her is true, so don't doubt him any longer. There's already enough melancholy going around, I don't think any one of us wants this situation to worsen." said Lacus knowingly, looking from Kira to Athrun.

As much as Cagalli was unsure of what to do at the moment, she wanted to clear things up, fast.

"Athrun, can we talk? In my room?" asked Cagalli, still not facing the blue-haired young man, and although he looked rather reproachful, he still looked broodingly handsome.

"I hope Miss Cagalli will understand him through and through, and patch it up with him. They were such a cute couple," stated Miriallia, dabbing her eyes slightly, as she watched the Orb Princess walk off.

Cagalli walked swiflty back to her bedroom, Athrun trailing along a few metres behind. When Athruns tepped into her room, Cagalli closed the door gently, and walking up to him, she suddenly unleashed her anger and hatred like a provoked tigress.

The blonde Orb Princess delievered a tight, stinging slap across Athrun's face, making him stagger backwards slightly, his hand touching his cheek. Man, her slaps hurt, and a great deal too.

"You shithole! Why did you lie to me! And lie about something so severe at that! Little did I know that I was in fact housing a _murderer_, whose victim was _me_! You claim you love me, and Miss Lacus is backing you up with all her sweet words! But how will I know that you're not just feigning it all!" screamed Cagalli, tears rolling uncontrollably from her honey-brown eyes.

Watching her scream and holler at him in such a devastated state sent a pang of guilt and hurt across Athrun's chest. His own eyes were swimming with tears as the pain and sensation of her slap still lingered on his left cheek. Cagalli was crying so bitterly, letting her emotions get the better of her as she wept tears of anguish and hurt.

"Cagalli, listen to me!" said Athrun desperately, as he watched Cagalli scream and cry out as she cried and cried uncontrollably.

"NO! I will NOT listen to you! Why don't YOU listen to ME for once! I trusted you fully, and yet, you let me down! I HATE men! They're all let downs, who will lie so low down just to get what they want!" hollered Cagalli, her breathing hard and deep.

Athrun fell to his knees, tears leaking silently from his eyes as he listened to her shout and scream at him, venting out all her anger and frustrations on him. He felt like such a fool, but of course, he _was_ a fool. He was such a useless bum, who couldn't even prove his love to the girl he loved most, to be true.

"I HATE guys! I HATE _you!_ I HATE what you did to and for me! I DETEST everything about you, your guts, your actions, your feelings! And last of all, I HATE MYSELF FOR SCREAMING AT YOU NOW!" screamed Cagalli, her voice going hoarse before she herself fell to sit on the floor, and crashing her head into Athrun's shoulder.

"Why is my love life so messed up! I start having feelings for some stupid guy named, Kira Yamato, and in the end he turns out to be my twin brother! Now, I've fallen in love with some jerk who was actually out to assassinate me!" wept Cagalli, snivelling loudly, and burying her head deeper into Athrun's shoulder, as she snuggled deeper into his embrace.

"Cagalli... I really do love you. I'm sorry for causing you so much pain! Slap me all you like, but I'll say this only once and mean it, I'll never betray you. I love you, I really do... I don't think I could survive a night without you." said Athrun, his tears falling from his eyes onto Cagalli's blonde hair. "I'd be so cold at night without your touch. I'd die on the inside without your love,"

The duo remained on the floor, canoodling and crying their eyes out, as each other tried to comfort and ease each other's pain. There was nothing to hide now, the truth was out, and Cagalli and Athrun knew that nothing would seperate them now.

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"Doctor, how is she?" asked Miriallia, jumping to her feet the moment Dr. Ishida exitted the medical unit and removed his surgical mask. His face held a worried and tired expression as he faced the bunch of teenagers eagerly waiting for news in the waiting area.

"To be truthful, I don't know. The bullet penetrated her right abdomen, and it punctured a bit of her intestines, and my medical team and I have stitched her up, but I'm afraid she's lost a considerable amount of blood. Someone will have to donate some blood to her, or she might not pull through the night. However, the blood donor has to be a co-ordinator, so as not to mix the different type of genes, which could cause further chaos." explained Dr. Ishida, his expression saddening slightly.

Just then, Athrun and Cagalli swerved round the corner, joining their friends. Cagalli's face was blotched, and it was prety obvious that she had been crying, while Athrun's tear-stains seemed to have cleared up.

"Very well then, all of us here who are co-ordinators will go for a bloodtest to see whose bloodtype matches Miss Kyo's." said Lacus firmly, turning to look from Yzak to Athrun.

The others agreed without further ado and followed Dr. Ishida off to get their blood samples collected and processed, leaving Cagalli and Miriallia standing outside the medical unit.

"D'you think we should go in?" asked Miriallia, turning to Cagalli before looking at the entrance of the medical unit. There was a sign on the entrance that said, "For visitors and medical staff only."

Cagalli nodded at Miriallia before slowly pushing the medical unit door open. The unit for surprisingly small, and it only contained five beds, one on which lay a limp and motionless Kyo. Her usually pink tinted cheeks were now pale and she seemed to have lost some weight.

The redheaded girl was unconscious and Cagalli had somewhere before that if she remained in this state for too long, she could become comatose and turn into a vegetable.

"Kyo, please wake up. Who's going to be my bodyguard now? I'm really grateful to you for saving my life earlier, though I regret not having been there for you when you were wounded." whispered Cagalli, tears welling up in her honey-brown orbs once more.

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Meanwhile in the medical laboratory, a problem had emerged, involving none other than Dearka. It turned out that the tanned skinned young man seemed to have a phobia of _needles_, and Athrun and Yzak were now trying to coax him to sitting still while his blood sample was taken.

Lacus and Kira had gone to the Orb management to apply for rooms for Lacus herself, Yzak and Dearka while they stayed at Orb, and were hoping that their request would be granted.

"Oh sit down, you wimp! It's just a needle!" exclaimed Yzak, trying to pin Dearka into the chair while the nurse tried to draw some blood from his arm.

"YEEEEAAARGH! What if my bloodtype matches? They'll stick this needle ito my arm connected to this long tube, right? And it'll suck out my blood, right? NOOOOOOO!" squealed Dearka, as he felt the needle pierce his skin and draw his blood out into the syringe.

In a matter of seconds, it was all over and Dearka had hopped out of his chair and was now running all the way back to the waiting area, Athrun and Yzak following after. Luckily, Athrun and Yzak had had their blood samples taken already, and so were free to chase after their blonde friend.

They found Dearka sitting patiently, however, still looking shaken, in the waiting area outside the medical unit. Athrun breathed in deeply before pushing open the door of the unit, and entering, Dearka and Yzak hurrying along behind him, especially Dearka, who seemed to think that if he was found alone, the doctor or nurse might give him more jabs.

"You! It's all your fault! Why'd you have to fire the gun! What if Kyo goes into a coma and doesn't come around! She was such a delightful and jovial girl! Even if she always put on a bold and brave front, she had a soft side of her, and she was really sweet at times!" bellowed Miriallia, attempting to lunge at Yzak, who took a step back in surprise at her outburst.

"Mirre, brace up, will you? Beating this asshole up or killing him won't reverse the way things are! All we can do now is hope for the best, and prepare for the worst." said Cagalli, restraining Miriallia as the auburn-haired girl struggled to be set free.

"Why you..." hissed Yzak, raising a fist at Cagalli but found himself being stopped by Dearka and Athrun, who had apparently moved in front of Cagalli to shield her from Yzak.

"Yzak, cool it! You've already injured one girl, and you still owe her an apology! Are you also going to hurt Cagalli, and not only owe her an apology, but owe _me_ one too?" questioned Athrun, glaring sternly at his platinum blonde friend who just grunted and folded his arms, before looking away.

"Kyo, you have to wake up. We're going to miss your husky voice and those fierce stares you gave to any guy who tried to touch you." said Cagalli, looking down at her unconscious friend, before laughing slightly, recalling a memory. "It was so hilarious that day when you told Miriallia why you wouldn't wear dresses, and that she could have all of your dresses if she liked."

The remainder of the day passed slowly, each of them carrying heavy hearts and anxious expressions. It seemed like the only thing to be joyful about that day, was that Yzak, Dearka and Lacus had been granted permission to stay at Orb, otherwise, the situation was full of anxiety.

Yzak and Dearka shared a suite while Lacus got a room to herself, after all, she was a girl, and a girl wouldn't be very comfortable sharing a room with two guys, would she?

Lying down on his bed, Yzak was plagued with thoughts of Kyo, and no matter how annoying he found them, he simply couldn't obliterate them from his conscience. For example, he couldn't forget her voice and what she had said to him at the beach that morning,"_Shut up, you asshole! Just carry on with what you want to say, and stop beating round the bush! Besides, you don't look that herculean yourself._"

Shaking his head roughly he turned over onto his side, and closing his eyes tight. Her voice, it kept ringing in his head, clearly he had a guilty conscience, and it seemed that those images and thoughts of her wouldn't go away, unless he apologised to her.

However, the platinum blonde was plagued with yet another problem, a decision. It was a decision he had to make about whether he should apologise to her or not? Well, of course, he SHOULD apologise to her, but it was the fact that he didn't want to.

That was Yzak Jule's big problem, he never wanted to apologise to anyone or be wronged. He was this aggressive young man, who never seemed to be able to find a girlfriend, either because he scared all of the girls he met, or gave them a bad first impression of him.

Finally, looking at the little alarm clock on the bedside table, which read 2.30a.m, he slowly got out of bed, and put on a jacket since he was wearing track pants, as he never really liked the idea of going anywhere in a shirt.

It was early in the morning and Yzak doubted if anyone would be visiting her at this hour, although if anyone happened to b_e_ there, his choice would be simple. Turn around and go back to bed.

Slowly pushing open the medical unit door, he was relieved to find that there was not a soul in sight, however, he had to muster all the courage he had and swallow all his pride just to sit down on the chair next to her bed.

Kyo's back length long hair was tucked neatly beneath her back, and her layered fringe was also tucked neatly behind her ears. He remembered clearly the tint of pink in her cheeks when he first met her on the beach, but now her skin was just fair and pale.

She was still alive of course, but barely. The blood samples would be out in hours to come, and if there was a match with Kyo's bloodtype there would be a chance that she would survive. The doctor had already stated that she might not make it through the night, and although Yzak was usually rather heartless, something in his mind told him he didn't want that to happen.

Taking a deep breath, he looked up at her. "Look, I'm sorry. I hope you can hear me because I don't want to apologise to you again."

Yzak wasn't expecting any response from Kyo since she was unconscious, but somehow, somethign in his heart seemed to be missing, as though there was a hole in it.

"Hey, you've got to wake up, or your friends will stone me to death." hissed Yzak, his voice still sounding rather normal and unmoved. However, still feeling rather guilty, he flared his nostrils in annoyance.

"_Please_ wake up, it's not usual for me to apologise to someone, and you'd better be grateful I'm apologising to you. You have to come around, _please_." said Yzak, his voice cracking up a little as he watched her lie there, motionless.

Something made him take her hand in his own, and it wasn't long before he realised how cold her hand was, and for some reason he just felt an instinct to want to warm her up.

_A/N There you go, another chappie! I know many of you might've skipped the last part, unless you're really die hard Yzak fans, which there aren't many out there. And sorry if Yzak was a little OOC, I mean if you want to make him fall in love, he has to get mushy sometimes, you know what I mean?Anyway, sorry for typo errors, and pls review!_

_**In the next chapter: Kira has a little talk with Lacus, and she tells him about her past, and Kira is relieved to hear that even though Athrun is her fiance, it is an arranged engagement. Meanwhile, Dearka finds Miriallia crying in the waiting area, worried sick for Kyo, and he can't help but comfort her. Also, Athrun gives something to Cagalli as a symbol of his love, what is it? And will Kyo open her eyes to see the pearly gates of heaven, or will she open her eyes to see Yzak sitting by her bed?**_


	9. Love & Life

Chapter 9 Love & Life

_A/N Heya, this chapter will pretty much focus on each and every one of the couples to be. So I guess those KxL, DxM and Yzak fans will be euphoric. Well, one thing for sure is, I'm euphoric! My father's just come home from New Zealand after not seeing him for a year! Yipee! Happy reading!_

The auburn-haired girl sat on one of the chairs in the waiting area, feeling the pearly tears come to her eyes once more at the thought of Kyo. Ever since she started working at Orb, Kyo had always been a close friend of hers, and Miriallia couldn't imagine what life would be like without her anymore.

Feeling goosebumps form on her soft skin as the air-con blew in her direction, she put her legs up on the chair and hugged them close to her, before she buried her head in her knees, letting her denim jeans soak up her tears.

It wasn't surprising that there was no one else in the waiting area besides herself, as it was only six in the morning, and she had guessed that Cagalli was probably snuggled up in bed with Athrun, and Kira would probably still be snoring like a pig. It didn't occur to her that someone was watching her from around the corner.

Dearka watched as Miriallia cried silently, head buried in her knees, shivering every single time the air-con blew at her. It was as though Miriallia was crying out silently, crying out for someone to come and cuddle her close and keep her warm.

On the other hand, Dearka had also noticed Yzak's absence from his bed, and he had searched high and low for his platinum blonde friend, but he was nowhere to be found.

Feeling sorry for Miriallia, Dearka stepped for ward and approached her, and she didn't seem to notice his presence until she saw a pair of shoes through her legs. Mirre lifted her head and stared up at the good looking copper-tone skinned young man before her.

His face held a sorry expression full of empathy and comfort. Slowly, he sat down beside her. "I know how you're feeling, the feeling of being afraid to lose someone."

Miriallia looked up, her cheeks blotched and her face tear-stained as she sniffled. She stared into his sparkling and misty violet eyes, somehow she seemed to find comfort in them.

"When I was very young, I lost my mother, I was really depressed and in a state of shock. It took a while for me to recover, but all I want to say is, even if you lose someone, life will still go on and there will always be others there for you." mumbled Dearka, looking ruefully at Miriallia, who seemed to be on the verge of tears again.

"Need a shoulder?" asked Dearka, looking at the auburn-haired girl who was like a sunflower that had just been drenched in the rain. Within seconds, Miriallia burst into tears again before sending her head crashing down onto Dearka's shoulder.

The blonde young man wrapped his arms around her, stroking her head gently as she cried uncontrollably. He could feel her entire frame shaking as she wept. To him she seemed so frail and vulnerable, so much in need of protection.

"Don't worry, I'll be here for you." Dearka whispered into Miriallia's ear as he propped her up higher on her lap.

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Kira didn't seem to have been able to fall back asleep after he woke up about an hour ago. The brunette boy decided to pay Kyo a visit to see if she had come around since he had so much time on his hands.

However, the moment he stepped out of his room and walked past the balcony, he saw a lone figure standing in the moonlight. The silhoutte of a girl with long flowing hair, standing and gazing up at the night sky.

"Miss Lacus?" asked Kira, stepping into the balcony toward the lone figure.

"Oh, it's just you, please call me Lacus, _Kira_." smiled Lacus, moving over to make space for him to stand next to her.

"Alright then. What brings you here so early in the morning? Shouldn't you be asleep?" asked Kira curiously, looking at the pretty girl.

"Can't seem to fall asleep. I'm too worried for Kyo. Miriallia seems to be in a state of pure anguish over her, and Cagalli was so worried she didn't fall asleep until she was in Athrun's arms. What about you? You're up early too." explained Lacus, tucking a strand of her hair behind her ear.

"I was planning to visit Kyo in the medical unit, I couldn't fall back asleep after I woke up earlier." replied Kira, wringing his hands behind his back as he cherished just being able to stand beside Lacus.

The brunette boy had obviously developed a crush on the attractive pink-headed girl overnight. Of course who could blame him? Lacus was pretty, compassionate and erudite all in one.

"I wonder if Yzak has apologised to Kyo yet. It doesn't matter if she's still unconscious, what matters is that he bothered to apologise out of his own will, and not because someone forced or dared him to." sighed Lacus, looking out into the sky as though counting the number of twinkling stars.

"That guy's so stuck up! What's his problem, he's so hostile and hotheaded! I doubt he'll actually apologise." snapped Kira, shaking his head and thinking of Yzak as some annoying dengue mosquito.

"Almost every one thinks of Yzak that way. Maybe it's because people never give him a chance to express himself properly. I'm sure he has a soft side as well." contradicted Lacus knowingly, looking at Kira, who seemed to be examining a flaw he had found on the balcony parapet.

"Oh yes, I've been meaning to ask you this. Are you ok with Cagalli being with Athrun and all, I mean, Athrun's your fiance, right?" questioned Kira, hoping his question wouldn't ruin Lacus's mood.

Lacus sighed before grinning widely at Kira, "Like I've mentioned before. Athrun and I are actually nothing more than good friends. Our engagement was all arranged by our parents. I'm just happy that Athrun has found someone he really loves. What's important in a marriage is that both parties love each other, with a love so deep it's like a trees roots rooted to the ground."

"You've got a lovely point of view, you know that?" complemented Kira, smiling kindly down at Lacus, who simply smiled back, revealing a full set of straight white teeth.

"Thank you," replied Lacus, returning her gaze to the scenery outside the balcony.

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"I won't be surprised if Mirre's already in the medical unit, she was so worried about Kyo, she was even more shaken than I was." said Cagalli, taking a slow stroll down the corridors toward the medical unit with Athrun.

"Everyone's shaken, Cagalli. Even if most of us don't know Kyo as well as Miriallia does, all of us hold a candle in our hearts hoping that she'll pull through. Naturally, nobody wants to see a life being lost." replied Athrun, his hand intertwined with Cagalli's. "Oh yes, I've got something for you."

Cagalli's eyebrows rose eagerly, wanting to see what her prince charming wanted to give to her. The Orb Princess's honey-brown orbs lit up immediately at the sublime and enchanting necklace in his right hand. It had a thin white gold chain, and the pendant was made out of two hearts, that were intertwined with each other. In addition, there were coloured gemstones decorated on the outer rim of of the hearts.

Cagalli's rosette lips broke into a smile before accepting the unique and sincere gift from Athrun. The necklace chain just shimmered in the early morning glow, and the pendant of hearts looked absolutely, perfectly beautiful.

"Did you make this?" asked Cagalli, realising that the pendant didn't look like it was cut out by anything mechanical, and yet, it was absolutely flawless. "It's just... it's just beautiful, I've never seen anything like it."

"Yeah, I was up the entire night while you were sleeping. So I decided ondoing the finishing touches on the pendant. Take thisas a symbol of my love." smiled Athrun, kissing Cagalli tenderly on the head. "I hope you like it though,"

"I love it," replied Cagalli, grinning sweetly up at Athrun, beforeletting Athrun put the neckalce on for her.They dontinued strolling down the corridor toward the medical unit, but something else caught their attention.

The duo paused in their tracks when they turned round the corner to find Dearka sitting in one of the chairs, and Miriallia sitting on his lap, her head resting sideways on his shoulder.

When the copper-tone skinned blonde young man realised Athrun and Cagalli's presence, he blushed deeply, but didn't make any movements as Miriallia seemed to have fallen asleep on his shoulder.

Athrun smiled widely at his tanned skinned friend, who just rolled his eyes. However,Athrun and Cagalli'sfootsteps seemed to have aroused Miriallia from her slumber as she fidgeted on Dearka's lap, before looking up at everyone. Cagalli smiled warmly at the auburn-haired girl.

"Shall we go in? Even if Kyo's unconscious, I'm sure she would appreciate some company," sighed Cagalli, looking at Miriallia, who looked on the verge of tears once more.

Athrun pushed open the medical unit door slowly, but paused half way, his expression looking half stunned and flabbergasted. "Kyo already has company,"

Wondering who it was, the others propped their heads in one row along the gap through the door. Almost instantly, the moment their gaze fell upon the person sitting on the floor by Kyo's bed, his head buried in one arm, and his other hand clutching Kyo's, their jaws dropped.

The platinum blonde, however, although in a sleeping position, was not sleeping. He had been kept awake the entire time since he had entered the medical unit hours ago, unable to fall back asleep as the apprehension of Kyo not waking up, ailed him.

"_Please_, wake up, _please_. I'm begging you, I'm _really_ sorry, please come around. I can't do anything but sit here till you wake up, _please_. I can't focus on anything else, please come around." whispered Yzak, unaware of the four pairs of eyes watching him from the door.

"Yzak?" asked Dearka, flabbergasted and shocked, his sudden ejaculation had sent the platinum blonde catapulting to his feet and spinning around in a jiffy.

Yzak's pale cheeks turned a brilliant shade of magenta before he turned away and quickly let go of Kyo's right hand. To everyone's surprise and joy, the moment Kyo's hand fell limply back to the red, her fingers flexed and relaxed, before her hand moved, as though feeling aorund the side of the bed looking for something.

The quartet of the others rushed to the beside, all eager to see if Kyo had really aroused from her slumber.

"Please wake up," Yzak thought in his heart, hoping she had heard him as he wouldn't be able to bear the guilt of killing an innocent girl, on his shoulders for much longer.

"I... I have... woken up," muttered Kyo weakly, before her eyes fluttered open, to gaze up at Yzak, who was looking stunned down at her. She had answered his question, when he hadn't said anything at all! She heard him! (A/N Maybe it's just the telepathy between two soul mates, hehe.)

"Oh my goodness Kyo! Oh thanks goodness, thanks heavens, THANK YOU YZAK!" screamed Miriallia, bending down to hug Kyo before turning to Yzak, with tears in her eyes and looking grateful.

"What did you do, mate?" questioned dearka, nudging his platinum blonde friend, who was looking rather stoned and unsure of what to do.

"The first thing I heard... when I regained... consciousness...was Yzak... he apologised. He's been... with me throughout... the night." said Kyo weakly, breathing in-between words and coughing slightly. "He's been apologising... and speaking to me all this while, telling me I had... to wake up. I could hear... him and yet... I couldn't find the strength... to wake up and tell him... it's alright... and that I don't... blame him anymore. I was alive and awake... all this while."

To Kyo's utmost surprise, Yzak's expression changed so drastically from stoned to immense fury, and he stormed out of the medical unit. Kyo was so shocked by his reaction, that it brought tears to her eyes.

"What... what did I say? Where's... he... where's he going?" mumbled Kyo, still unable to speak in full sentences without stopping midway. Her eyes were swimming in tears, a little hurt and confused at why Yzak had suddenly seemed furious with her, and had just stormed off without a word.

"He's probably going back to his room. He's always like this, not to worry. You didn't say anything wrong," reassured Athrun, looking at Kyo, whose tears were threatening to roll down her cheeks already.

"Maybe he just... can't stand... me. I'm not surprised anyway... I'm just a useless... annoying girl." said Kyo, her tears running down her cheeks and her voice cracking up at her last few words.

"Gosh, Yzak isn't the type who'd apologise to someone, you know. Let alone, apologise to the person many times and even accompany the person throughout the night." stated Dearka, before the medical unit door burst open, revealing an anxious Lacus and Kira.

"Oh Kyo! You're awake, we've all been so worried." said Lacus looking at Kyo, who was lying on her side, and it took Lacus to bend over in an odd angle before she realised there were tears running down her cheeks. "Kyo, what's wrong? Those don't look like tears of joy,"

"It's nothing new, Mr. Yzak Jule just hurt another girl's feelings, that's all." muttered Dearka, shaking his head and feeling sorry for Kyo, and wondering why she even liked Yzak in the first place. He was such an aggressive brute!

"Yeah, actually that hot tempered guy seemed immensely furious! His entire face was red with fury and when we asked him if Kyo was awake, he shouted back the answer. What'd you guys do to him?" questioned Kira, who ended being up asked to shut up by his sister, as Kyo was now crying into her pillow, feeling offended and hurt.

Just then, Dr. Ishida swerved into the medical unit, and smiled widely down at his patient, who was still engrossed in shedding her tears.

"Well now, I see you're awake! I'm so glad you made it through the night, very strong girl you are, Kyo!" complemented Dr. Ishida, in an attempt to cheer his patient up, who was crying for some reason that was unknown to him. "Was there anyone with her at night?"

"Yeah, Yzak was here accompanying her throughout the night, according to Kyo, that is. Apparently, he woke her up and then made her cry after that, such a weird guy. What's the use of apologising to her then?" muttered Kira, shaking his head and clicking his tongue on the roof of his mouth.

"Does she still need blood? I mean, now that she's regained consciousness, she should be alright, right?" asked Miriallia concerned, her eyes still tearful, and her cheeks blotched by her tear-stains.

"I shouldn't think so, but she's still very weak, so she'll need plenty of rest and good food." said Dr. Ishida, smiling warmly down at the bunch of teenage friends, who were cleary very concerned about their redheaded friend.

"I'll get the nurses to monitor Kyo closely, and maybe when she's hungry she could eat some light foods like porridge or soup. I've got other things to tend to for now, so I'll take my leave, but if you do need any help, just scream." stated Dr. Ishida humourously, winking at them before spining around and striding off.

"Kyo, did that platinum blonde chap frighten you or something? Well anyway, stop crying already, he's always like that, though I don't know what infuriated him so badly." said Dearka knowingly, who received a sharp nudge in the ribs from Athrun, who shot him a warning look.

Kyo slowly rolled over back onto her back, wincing slightly at the pain from her wound. She snivelled loudly, and wiped her tears away with the back of her hand, thinking of Yzak.

Yzak had been with her throughout the night, and he had been ever so sweet, whispering things to her. She had heard every single thing he had said so clearly and yet she couldn't find the strength to wake up and tell him tht she was conscious.

But why had he just stormed off like that when she had tried to thank him? Despite his aggressive exterior she had witnessed when she had first met him, Yzak had let Kyo experience a totally different more compassionate side of him as well.

"Kyo, are you hungry? I'll get ome porridge if you like," said Cagalli, shaking her redheaded friend gently out of her thoughts.

Kyo shook her head slightly, looking rather down and blue. "I don't want anything to eat, I just want to think of _him_."

"Kyo, it's very important that you eat to build up your strength and immune system." advised Lacus, placing a warm and gentle hand on Kyo's shoulder, and looking apprehensively down at her.

"And what d'you mean you just want to think of _him_? You mean, _Yzak_?" asked Dearka, looking absolutely horrified at the attractive redhead's recent statement, of not wanting to do anything else but think of an aggressive brute. "How can you possibly like him? Through my two years of being friends with him, he's always struck me as a guy who'd never get any girl to like him."

"Shut up, Dearka! Yzak owes her another apology now, anyway. He hurt her feelings by walking out on her like that!" hissed Athrun sternly, grabbing Dearka roughly by the arm and shaking the copper-tone skinned young man.

"Yeah, besides you heard Kyo. If bringing Yzak here is going to make her eat, then that's the least we can do." said Miriallia knowingly, sniffling slightly.

"Mirre's right, let's go Dearka, and if Yzak is going to root himself anywhere, like sitting on the floor for example, we'll just have to drill out the entire patch of floor he's sitting on and drag him here." said Athrun, attempting to drag the tanned blonde off, but found himself stopped by Cagalli, who looked rather worried.

"Athrun, why don't you just let Dearka go? That platinum blonde's a brute! He's already shot Kyo and wounded her, I don't want him to flare up and shoot you too." said Cagalli, clinging on to Athrun's forearm, and refusing to let him go anywhere.

"Cagalli's got a point Athrun, and you'd better listen to her, because if you break her heart, you'll have to deal with me, her _elder_ brother!" snapped Kira, only to realise the BIG mistake in his sentence, seconds after.

"What did you say, _punk_?" asked Cagalli, her eyes flaming up, the tongues of flame obvious within her honey-brown orbs. Kira backed away against the wall, regretting and wishing he could take backwhat he had just said.

Since young, Cagalli had always been convinced that she had been the elder twin between her and Kira, and although there was no proof that this was a fact, she had set her heart outto believe in it.

"Hey, you're always treating me like this! What I said could or could not have been wrong! There's no scientific evidence that you're older than I am! For all you know, I could be older!" said Kira, in an attempt to defend himself against Cagalli, who had flattened him against the wall, looking at him straight in the eye like a provoked tigress.

As Athrun watched Cagalli bicker on with her brunette brother once more, he could only smile to himself. Ever since he had met the Orb Princess, he had always considered her to be the child of a tiger, fierce and defensive. Yet, there were times where she would break down.

Athrun took advantage of the situation to slip away with Dearka, without Cagalli noticing, heading off to Yzak and Dearka's suite, where the platinum blonde would most likely be taking refuge.

_A/N Ok, here you go, another chapter, sorry if this chapter had too little Athrun&Cagalli fluff. There'll be more in the next chapter, I promise. Sorry for typo errors, and pls review!_

_**In the next chapter: How will Dearka and Athrun's confrontation with Yzak go? Will it turn out to be a rough battle using just words, or will it turn violent and dangerous? Also will the love between D&M and K&L, start becoming more obvious when they join Athrun and Cagalli for lunch at Orb, and how will the lunch go? In addition, is Kyo merely just touched by Yzak's actions, or are her feelings for him developing into love? **_


	10. Love Is Never Wrong

Chapter 10 Love Is Never Wrong

_A/N Ohaiyo! I did promise that there would be more A&C fluff in this chapter, right? Well, I'm definitely not going to break that promise! Also ppl, we're getting closer to the angsty parts already, in the next chapter is where the angst will all start filing in, hehe. (Laughs evilly). Anyway, happy reading!_

"Kyo, at least eat something. You need it to build up your strength." encouraged Miriallia, looking worriedly over at Cagalli, who was sitting patiently beside Miriallia, and helping the auburn-haired girl try to coax the redheaded girl into eating.

"Yeah, what happened to the rough and tumble Kyo Yamajika we knew before all this happened? If you're planning on reverting back to the Kyo you once were, you'll need to eat for energy." agreed Cagalli knowingly, looking hopefully down at Kyo, who seemed to be in a dazed state.

"I'm not hungry," muttered Kyo, her head turned away from the bowl and spoon Miriallia was holding out to her mouth. Kyo's cheeks weren't as pale as before, but even though she had regained consciousness, the usual tint of pink in her cheeks hadn't returned.

"Go to hell, Zala. Fancy sneaking off behind my back while I was dealing with Kira." hissed Cagalli, folding her arms and lifting her head high arrogantly, pretending not to give a care about her blue-haired boyfriend. Even the blonde Orb Princess held her head up and folded her arms, Miriallia could see that Cagalli was indeed worried about Athrun.

Even though Yzak was a friend of Athrun's, he was still rather vicious and violent. Just like when he tried to attack Cagalli the day before, and ended up shooting Kyo instead, and being rather heartless at times, the platinum blonde just fled the scene, leaving Athrun and Lacus to rush Kyo to the medical unit.

Cagalli had a good point when she tried to stop her prince charming from going after Yzak Jule. When the aggressive brute was infuriated, he was capable of doing things in the most inhuman way. By going after Yzak, Athrun was putting his life on the line, and if he so much as pushed Yzak a teeny bit too far over the line, one gunshot in the right place would be enough to take Athrun's life for good.

"Relax Cagalli, he went to find Yzak in order to help Kyo, and he knows very well that you want to see Kyo get better again. So you see? It's not like Athrun did what he did for no reason or rhyme." contradicted Miriallia, looking knowingly at Cagalli.

Meanwhile, Lacus and Kira had decided to take a slow stroll together down the corridors of Orb, chatting with each other, occassionally laughing at the silly jokes Kira cracked up.

"What starts with an 'E' and ends with an 'E', but has only one letter in it?" asked Kira, looking eagerly down at the pink-haired girl, who seemed to have engaged herself in racking her brains for a logical and suitable answer.

Lacus mulled over it for a moment before sighing and shaking her head, "I give up, can I have the answer please?" she asked, looking up at Kira. The brunette was captivated by her enchanting blue eyes, which held a glitter of light in them, and it was a while before he realised that Lacus was calling out his name.

"Huh? Oh, sorry. Let's see, where were we? Oh yes, the answer." said Kira smiling, and trying to hide the blush forming in his cheeks. "Well, the answer is an envelope. 'Enevlope' starts and ends with an 'E', and it has only one _letter_ in it."

Within seconds of hearing the answer, Lacus burst into a fit of giggles. "Oh my, you sure are good at cracking jokes, aren't you, Kira?"

The duo paused in their tracks by one of those large window panes you would find at Orb. Kira seemed to find joy in hearing Lacus laugh so mirthfully. Her laugh sounded not too girlish and had a tint of a mature sound in it, and she was ever so polite, holding her hand at her mouth as she laughed.

Within minutes, Lacus's mirthful laughters died away, leaving the both of them staring into each other's eyes. It was only then did Lacus realise what an alluring shade of violet Kira's eyes were, and my, was his face ever so handsome. His hair colour suited his skin tone well, and his hair swept with the light zephyr blew past them.

Kira seemed to be falling deeper into those bright eyes of Lacus's, which seemed to be focusing on his own intently. She was charismatic, gentle, innocent and kindhearted, but yet, she wasn't meek or easily intimidated.

"You know what I plan on doing when I become an adult?" whispered Kira, oblivious to the fact that their noses were now in contact, and that his mind was becoming cloudy already.

"What?" Lacus whispered back, seeming to realise their closeness, as she gave his nose a gentle lick with the tip of her tongue.

"I want to wed a loving wife, settle down and start a family." responded Kira, hearing Lacus mumble something in reply, as he leant forward, feeling his heart pound faster as his lips brushed hers, his tongue wanting to taste the sweet insides of her mouth.

It was just seconds before Kira claimed Lacus's lips in his own, moaning in satisfaction when she opened her mouth to let him slip his tongue in. Kira slowly enjoyed the slight tinge of strawberries in her mouth, as he explored the walls of her mouth. Of course she tasted like strawberry, she had just eaten a slice of strawberry shortcake for breakfast earlier on.

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"Yzak, you owe her another apology for hurting her feelings! She was touched by your actions and was about to thank you, when you just stormed off like that!" exclaimed Athrun, his eyebrows furrowed angrily as he stood a few feet away from Yzak who was sitting cross-legged on his bed.

There was a long silence before Athrun broke it, "Dearka, would you at least open your mouth and say something to help me! As far as I know, you're the closest to him than anyone else!"

"Ah! Yes, sir! But then again, no matter what I say, Yzak's as stubborn as a mule, so he won't listen." stated Dearka bluntly, folding his arms across his brawny chest and leaning against the wall.

"You've got to get rid of that mentality Dearka! How would you know he won't listen if you haven't done so much as open your mouth?" asked Athrun, looking expectantly at Dearka for an answer, before rolling his eyes and returning his gaze to Yzak, who was lookign rather cantankerous and pissed.

"Gee, you're useless you know?" Athrun ended, pacing up and down the suite before stopping directly in front Yzak, and looking at the platinum blonde young man fiercely.

"Oh fine, I'll say something." snapped Dearka, striding up to stand beside Athrun and face Yzak, who was still maintaining his temper very well. "You know Yzak old pal, I can tell you this, though I don't think you'll really care, but to show Athrun I'm not useless, I'll say it. That Kyo girl has been in tears or close to tears ever since you stormed out of the unit, and according to Miriallia, she hasn't eaten a bite since. That's why Athrun and I are here hankering you to get your bum out of here and back to the medical unit and maybe comfort her a little."

Yzak felt something hit his guts at Dearka's last statement. "_That Kyo girl girl has been in tears ever since you stormed out of the unit... She hasn't eaten a bite since." _The platinum blonde tried to dismiss the peculiar buzzing feeling in his stomach, but to no avail, it just got worse.

Yzak had no clue what the hell was wrong with him, his insides seemed to turn to mush at the very mention of Kyo's name, and it only gave him that guilty buzzing feeling to hear that she was in such a sorry state because of him, and even though his conscience was telling him to move to the ward and accomapny her for a while to ease his guilt, there was no way he was going to do that in front of the others.

"You know what? I give up, you made us do this Yzak!" yelled Athrun, stepping forward and seizing Yzak by the arms and dragging him off the bed, making the platinum blonde roar with fury and protest with swears and curses.

Meanwhile, Kira and Lacus who were still busy kissing by the window pane, were startled and their peaceful moment was shattered by the suite door bursting open and Yzak's loud frightening roars, which made Lacus cling on tighter to Kira's chest.

Athrun and Dearka dragged him all the way from the suite to the medical unit, avoiding Yzak's limbs, which he was flailing about madly like a wild untamed animal.

Miriallia jumped as the medical unit burst open, Athrun and Dearka dragging in a protesting and screaming Yzak.

"Go on, apologise to her! You owe her an apology anyway!" yelled Athrun fiercely, looking furiously down at Yzak.

_Seven days and seven nights_

_Of thunder_

_The water's rising_

_And I'm slipping under_

"Leave him..." muttered Kyo softly, as she watched the young man she had been dreaming off, squirm and protest loudly. Finally, unable to bear the sight of Yzak roaring like that, Kyo gathered all his strength and courage, before yelling, "LEAVE HIM ALONE!"

_I think I've fallen in love_

_With the eighth world wonder_

_Yeah, yeah, yeah._

The moment she finished her statement, Kyo fell back into a half-sitting half-lying position on her bed, her back supported by her pillows. Athrun and Dearka had also dropped Yzak to a sitting position on the floor, at Kyo's sudden outburst.

_I guess that I'm just fallin'_

_Deeper into something _

_I've never known_

_Yeah_

_But the way that I'm feelin'_

_Makes me realise _

_That it can't be wrong_

Yzak was sitting on the floor, his nostrils dilating now and then, breathing like an infuriated bull.

_Your love's like a summer ray_

_Washing my downs away_

The redheaded girl lay on her bed, clutching her side and breathing deeply. "If he doesn't want to see me, then don't force him to. I'll just have to accept the truth that he _hates_ me."

_Seven days and seven nights_

_Of thunder_

_The water's rising_

_And I'm slipping under_

_I think I've fallen in love_

_With the eighth world wonder_

_Yeah, yeah, yeah._

Yzak froze, feeling his insides crumbled at Kyo's recent statement. "No, you're wrong, I don't _hate_ you. I don't know why, but I feel for you, I do. I just don't know how to express myself. It's just so damn weird." Yzak thought to himself.

_It's only been a week but_

_It's coming over me and_

_It's making me believe that_

_You're the one for me_

_Yeah, yeah._

"Wow Kyo, that was a loud one." said Cagalli, breaking the silence, as she stared down at Kyo, who was still breathing deeply.

"Seriously Yzak, you need to stop being so aggressive and stuck up. You'd better be grateful she likes you, because you might not get another girl who feels for you like she does, for the rest of your life." stated Dearka bluntly, shaking his head at his platinum blonde friend.

"Don't fluster him already. Calm down, Yzak," said Kyo, still breathing deeply, as she watched the platinum blonde's frame shake madly for a moment before he steadied himself.

The bunch around them seemed shocked at this. Yzak had never listened to anyone, especially a _girl_. Looks like Kyo's feelings for him weren't one sided after all, Yzak did like her, after all, there was proof. He had spent the entire night with her, sitting by her bed, and not to mention, he was holding her hand too.

"Well Kyo, I can see that he listens to you, which is good. It's almost time for lunch, why don't the rest of you join Athrun and I downstairs in the dining hall? Meanwhile, Yzak can stay here with Kyo and maybe get her to eat something. Besides, since he obeys Kyo, she could give him some obedience training." said Cagalli sarcastically, clinging on to Athrun's forearm.

Yzak catapulted to his feet at the Orb Princess's statement, almost wanting to pounce on her and beat her up.

"Yzak, don't." said Kyo, sounding not all firm, but just hopeful and serene, and sure enough, to everyone's surprise, Yzak obeyed. As much as the platinum blonde didn't want to let the others see that he could be defeated, especially by a girl, becuse of how he felt for her, his body just obeyed his conscience, and although his entire soul was rivaling against this, he couldn't help himself.

"Umm, Mr. Yzak, please try and get Kyo to eat something, it'll be a great help if you can feed her." said Miriallia, addressing Yzak formally in case the young Jule got aggressive again.

Kyo watched as the entire bunch moved off for lunch, each of them smiling warmly at her as they walked past the medical unit window.

Once they had arrived in the dining hall, they settled themselves into chairs, and all were oblivious to the fact that they were all in pairs.

Lunch was served immediately, and Dearka could feel his mouth watering as the handmaidens lifted up the covers on the plates, revealing all sorts of lavish dishes. Roast chicken, cream of mushroom soup, miso soup, sweet and sour pork, peppered crab, steamed sea bass and many other foods to pamper his tastebuds with.

Everyone began digging in and eating contentedly when suddenly, Dearka moaned out while eating a piece of chicken breast, "Her _breasts_ are so tender, mmmm."

Lacus was staring shocked at Dearka, Kira had fallen off his chair in fright but was now laughing, Athrun had also burst out laughing because of Kira's contagious laughter, Cagalli had nearly choked on her tea, and Miriallia had dropped her fork, her jaw hanging wide open.

"Hem hem, Dearka, exactly whose _breasts_ are you dreaming of?" asked Athrun cheekily, looking at Miriallia, who shook her head frantically, to indicate that she certainly had never stripped or gone to bed with Dearka.

"No one's, I was referring to the chicken's! The meat is so tender!" said Dearka, looking round the table at everyone, and laughing out aloud.

Miriallia breathed a sigh of relief, hoping that no one would've misunderstood Dearka's statement, and that he was dreaming of _her breasts_. Lacus burst into a fit of giggles, while Athrun had now also tipped off his chair, rolling around on the floor with Kira, and even Cagalli was laughing.

However, Miriallia wasn't very comfortable with the situation, somehow she felt rather awkward sitting next to Dearka, maybe it was due to the fact that she had a crush on him. It had developed after she had cried into his shoulder earlier that morning.

"Right! _Chicken... tender breasts... the chicken's_!" laughed Athrun, clutching his stomach as he rolled aorund on the floor laughing madly.

The rest of the lunch went on smoothly until a new dish was served, and it so happened that the dish was called, 'Spotted Dick'. Cagalli had burst out laughing at the name, and Lacus was giggling away madly along with Miriallia, however, none of the guys's seemed to find it funny, they wouldn't have imagined dicks to be spotted.

The dish was named 'Spotted Dick', as the meat from the dish came from a type of deer called 'Spotted Dick', and so that was how it came about.

Desert was a lovely plate of sushi and some japanese sake, and Cagalli had warned both Kira and Athrun not to get drunk, or else she would kill them both. Cagalli had been known to carry out her mind's thoughts, and because of the death threat, Athrun and Kira had watched the amount of drinks they had.

However, the sweet thing about the lunch was that, Miriallia was having a hard time stopping Dearka from drinking too much, as his mind seemed to be set on getting drunk.

Meanwhile, up in the medical unit. Yzak had managed to warm up to Kyo, and was now feeding her some porridge calmly, without making a face or having his hand shaking the entire way, which was what happened during the first few spoonfuls.

"Oh yes, I just want to thank you for last night, I mean staying here with me. I think, had it not been for you, I wouldn't have made it." said Kyo softly, blushing as she finished her statement.

"It was nothing. I just couldn't get my _damn_ self to sleep anyway, and I did owe you a _stupid_ apology." said Yzak softly, guiding another spoonful of porridge into Kyo's mouth.

"You seem to have a rather weird, bad habit. Why do you swear in every sentence you make? No offence, I was just asking." muttered Kyo, shifting a little further away from Yzak again, in case he flared up and started spewing porridge all over the place.

Normally, Yzak would have pumelled and beaten up anyone who were to ask him what Kyo had just asked. However, his insides were still nothing more than mush, and he couldn't bring himself to even hit her. However, the platinum blonde did make a face, indicating he was rather uncomfortable with the question.

"It's alright if you don't want to answer, I'm just being all too nosy. I can't wait to get out of this medical unit, I hate what I have to wear, since I'm a patient. I _hate_ dresses, in fact this is worst than a dress, it's more like a nightgown." complained Kyo, pulling down the covers a little and looking at the baggy white gown she was wearing, and shaking her head.

"Miss, my hand's getting tired already, if you're not hungry, please state it out aloud, because I can't read people's damn minds." hissed Yzak harshly, as his hand had been lifted in midair over the bowl for at least a minute already, whilst Kyo was talking.

Kyo giggled, "Sorry, Mister." she replied, opening her mouth to receive another spoonful of warm porridge.

Yzak couldn't help but stare at her face as she slowly neatened out the folds in the covers of her bed, her little button nose, fair alabaster skin, aqua blue eyes, that were now a lot warmer looking than before, when they once held a frozen look. Her orangey-red hair looked as soft as silk, and her fringe fell over one side of her face, and the rest of her hair fell over her shoulders and back.

Kyo slowly looked back up at him, and the moment Yzak realised she had noticed he was making his interest in her a little too obvious, he blushed deeply looking away from her. The attractive redheaded girl giggled madly, before planting a soft kiss on his forehead, her cheeks turning a brilliant shade of magenta.

Yzak felt his ears turn red too, although Kyo could not see this, as his ears were hidden by his platinum blonde hair.

"Thanks a bunch, Yzak. I'm stuffed, I don't think I could eat another bite." replied Kyo, smiling sweetly at Yzak, ebfore looking back up and gasping at what she saw at the window facing the corridor.

There were 6 faces pressed onto the window glasses, staring at Yzak and her, and they obviously had been there for quite some time already, as Kyo could see the condensation on the glass.

Yzak perked up to look at what she had gasped at, and nearly got a fright himself when he saw his 6 other freiends, Athrun, Dearka, Cagalli, Kira, Miriallia and Lacus staring at him and Kyo.

Almost instantly, Yzak's entire masculine frame began shaking madly again, his breathing becoming deep and loud, his face turning red with fury. He clenched his fist and slammed it hard into the movable table where the bowl of porridge lay. The bowl spun on it's bottom for a moment before settling down again.

"Yzak, it's alright. Stop it, please." said Kyo gently, looking up at Yzak, who still had his back facing her.

"Sorry, we couldn't help but look. I guess your efforts paid off Yzak, you earned that kiss from her." teased Dearka, laughing at Yzak, who tried to lunge at the copper-tone skinned young man, but was held back by Kyo's hand holding on to his forearm.

"Yzak relax, you're around with your friends, not with strangers or enemies." said Kyo, stroking his arm gently, encouraging the platinum blonde to calm down and relax.

Yes, what she said was true, but most importantly, he was with _her_. Kyo was there to soothe his fury, it was just like stopping a pot of soup from bubbling over and onto the stove.

"Glad to see you're a lot perkier now, Kyo. I don't know how I'd live on without your company." said Miriallia, smiling relieved down at Kyo, her eyes shining with tears as she received a smile back from Kyo.

"Come on, it's not like I'm your only friend. I see you've already found yourself a suitable companion of the opposite gender." teased Kyo giggling, as she gestured toward Miriallia and Dearka's intertwined fingers and palms.

"Hey carrot top, speak for yourself." said Dearka defensively, looking at Kyo and shifting his gaze to Yzak, before looking back at her and winking cheerily.

"I may have red hair, but it certainly doesn't make me look like a _carrot_. How about you, maybe I'll nickname you Mr. Chocolate With Caramel Topping." retorted Kyo, referring to Dearka's skin tone as chocolate, and his blonde hair as the caramel topping.

Dearka pouted at Kyo's statement, but returned his attention to Miriallia who had just leant her head on his shoulder.

"Yzak, do you want lunch? I'll pop down by the cafeteria with you if you like." offered Dearka, looking expectantly at Yzak who just grunted and looked away.

"I'm not hungry, besides, I think you've got more important things to tend to." hissed Yzak, rolling his eyes before settling himself into the plastic chair by Kyo's bed.

"If you say so," replied Dearka, shrugging and leaving the unit with Miriallia, who had told him she needed to use the loo.

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_That night, 11.48 p.m._

"Stop it already. I'm exhausted, aren't you? You've been the one doing all the moving anyway." said Cagalli, hitting Athrun playfully on the arm before snuggling in closer to him and resting her head on his bare chest.

"Oh alright. I had fun anyway, and if we'd gone any further than we had, I would've gone insane." stated Athrun bluntly, licking Cagalli's face one last time, before settling down with his arms around her.

"You know, when I first moved in with you in your room, and saw you take out the mattress for me, do you know what I wondered when I looked at your bed?" stated Athrun, getting Cagalli's attention as she turned her head toward him. "When will I ever get to sleep on that bed? She gets a huge bed, while I get a puny mattress."

Cagalli laughed at Athrun's statement, "The mattress couldn't have been that bad! Besides, your wish has come true hasn't it? You're lying on my bed right now,"

"Nah, it wasn't as I said. It was quite alright. But I am grateful now, I mean I've finally gotten to sleep on your bed, and use you as a bolster." said Athrun, throwing his left leg over Cagalli's body and pulling her in closer.

"Is that what you think of me as? A bolster? Are you saying my body is as straight and as bland looking as a bolster? Am I nothing more than a bolster to you?" contradicted Cagalli, using her head to knock Athrun's jaw, as she couldn't use her arms or legs.

"Of course not! You've got the body of the hottest girl on Earth and on PLANTs! And even better still, you're all mine. Nobody's going take my precious rose away from me." said Athrun, pressing kisses down Cagalli's neck.

"I'd rather be a Venus Flytrap, thank you." replied Cagalli softly, before yawning like an exhausted puppy and cuddling up to her prince charming, before falling into a deep slumber.

_A/N Chapter up! Hope you guys enjoyed it, sorry for typo errors and pls review! Check out the angst in the next chappie! Oh yes, the song was "Eighth World Wonder" by Kimberly Locke! Pls review!_

_**In the next chapter: Dearka and Miriallia finally confess their feelings for each other and agree to start a relationship, regardless of the fact that Miriallia is a Natural and Dearka, a Co-ordinator. Kyo regains most of her strength and can now stand up and walk around, however, she's not allowed outside the medical unit. She doesn't find it lonely either, with Yzak spending most of his time with her. Uzumi Nara Athha returns, and demands a private meeting with Cagalli and the Orb management to discuss what had happened in his absence. Also, Kira and Lacus find Athrun unconscious in his room, which smells strongly of chloroform gas. What has happened to Athrun and what will Cagalli's reaction be? **_


	11. The Unexplainable

Chapter 11 The Unexplainable

_A/N Hehe, this chapter's going to be a little angsty, and it's going to get worse, hehehehehe. (Laughs evilly). Ok fine, I'm evil I know, but it's the story's plot, and needless to say, the ending will be happy, it's like that in all my fanfics. However, I can say this fanfic's ending will be very different from the rest of my fanfics. Anyway, happy reading!_

There were three loud knocks on the oakwood door of Cagalli's bedroom, and didn't startle or shock her as Athrun and her had already been awake for at least half an hour already. The loud knocks were followed by Miriallia's voice calling out Cagalli's name, and requesting for the Orb Princess to open the door.

"Coming, Mirre!" yelled Cagalli, hopping off her bed, sill in her undergarments, but she couldn't care less, since it was Miriallia at the door, and not some Orb management official.

"Ah, good morning, Cagalli. You're due for a meeting with your father and the Orb management later on at 9a.m. Lord Uzumi returned to Orb in the wee hours this morning. He didn't look very happy when he told me to pass you this note earlier on. If I'm not wrong he's going to be discussing the incident of Kyo's casualty, and about Lacus, Yzak and Dearka." explained Miriallia patiently, finally ending her longwinded speech.

"I see, thanks, Mirre." replied Cagalli taking the note from her auburn-haired friend, but before she could close the door, Miriallia poked her head in to find Athrun sitting upright on Cagalli's bed, without a shirt, and with the bedcovers pulled up to his waist, and Miriallia was certain he wasn't wearing anything under the bedcovers either.

Miriallia returned her gaze to Cagalli, "You did 'it' again?" she asked, raising an eyebrow and looking kind of concerned for the blonde girl.

"Relax, he's not infected with any kind of disease or anything. Besides, he's too hot to resist." said Cagalli, winking jovially at the auburn-haired girl before closing the door shut.

"If you say so," muttered Miriallia under her breath, before she turned and walked off, shaking her head and going back to wondering about what the meeting in two hours would be about.

Just as Miriallia turned the corner, she collided into something hard, which made a grunting noise as Miriallia made contact with it. She raised her head to find that she had collided head first into not a wall or a flowerpot, but into the brawny chest of Dearka Elthman.

"Oh sorry," said Dearka, moving to the right and left, finding that Miriallia did the same. "Didn't see you there," he added, his cheeks turning a little red.

"Same here," said Miriallia, her entire face burning red hot, as she tried to hide her embarrassment from her crush, who seemed to be moving in the same way as she did, so that each of them blocked the other's path. "Sorry,"

Just as Miriallia paused for a moment, she noticed that Dearka's arm held a rather deep gash on it, and it was bleeding quite badly, and she couldn't help but ask, "Oh my, what happened to your arm?"

"Had a little bit of a rough time with _Mr. Yzak_, but I sort of asked for it anyway. Me and my big mouth. I went on to tease him about your friend and him, and he lost his cool and threw a penknife at me, and I blocked it off with my arm. So that's how I got landed in this state. Good thing your friend, Kyo, was there to talk him out of it, or I would probably be lying on a bed beside Kyo right now." explained Dearka, smiling warmly down at the auburn-haired girl, who looked rather worried for him.

"Don't worry your pretty little head over me, I'm not worth it. I'll go bandage it up right away, it's a small wound, no need to shed crocodile tears over me." said Dearka, noticing that Miriallia's eyes were swimming in tears.

Somehow, Miriallia seemed to feel the pain just looking at the gash on the copper-tone skinned young man's arm. The gash was bleeding so profusely and it looked ever so deep, it couldn't be possible that Dearka felt no pain at all. Boy, he sure was a tough guy, he didn't seem to wince or show any signs of pain at all.

"I'll help you with that, I don't think you'd be able to bandage your arm properly with only one hand." said Miriallia, grabbing his unhurt arm and dragging him off into her office, where she reached up for the first aid kit sitting on her shelf.

Dearka couldn't find the right words on how to protest and so just let her drag him away while he just shut up. Miriallia pushed him into a swivel chair before laying out all the needed utensils and ointments on her desk, and beginning to clean his wound with a gauze swab.

The blonde young man couldn't refrain from gazing at her as she worked on his arm, the tip of ehr tongue protruding from in-between her moist lips as she focused on cleaning his wound. Although her hair was short, Dearka could still tell that it was probably silky soft and he couldn't keep from trying to imagine what it felt like in-between his fingers.

In addition, her green eyes, although not as much of a deep emerald like Athrun's, sparkled in the rays of the early morning sunlight as those green-orbs concentrated on the gash on his arm.

Dearka just sat there and enjoyed the feeling of her nimble fingers working on his wound and occasionally brushing against his skin. It was about ten minutes before she declared she was done with dressing his wound and bandaging it.

"Thanks a bunch, _Miriallia_." said Dearka, pronuncing her name in such a cute way, she giggled as she kept the rest of the gauze swabs and tubes of ointments.

You're welcome, Dearka." replied Miriallia, smiling sweetly at him as he remained standing by the swivel chair he was sitting in, and gazing at her intently.

"Say, can I ask you something?" said Dearka, trying to swallow the lump that was now forming in his throat. He was going to ask her if she was willing to go out with him and let him court her, but just the thought of asking her was making him jittery.

"Sure, what is it?" asked Miriallia, putting the first aid kit back on her shelf, before turning to look back at the copper-tone skinned young man, who was looking kind of uneasy and was shifting his weight from one foot to another.

"I was just wondering, d'you have... a _boyfriend_?" questioned Dearka, hoping the load on is back would get lighter now that he had at least asked her a question related to what he was going to propose to her. However, he found that the load just weighed down on him even more.

Miriallia giggled slightly at the question, "No I don't, and I've never had one either, Why? You thinking of something?"

"What the heck! She's such an attractive girl, and she's NEVER had a boyfriend!" Dearka thought to himself, "Maybe I'm the first one with enough courage to ask her, hehe. I'm bloody smart."

"I was just speculating, would it be ok if... we went out somewhere... together one day?" asked Dearka, breathing a deep sigh of relief and enjoying the light feeling in his chest.

Miriallia burst into a fit of giggles, her cheeks blushing redder and redder with each second that passed. "That's mighty sweet of you _Mr. Elthman_, and I shall gladly to the honour of being your _girlfriend_."

Dearka suddenly felt the cocky beast within him jump for joy and turn into angel. "She said YES! She's AGREED to go out with YOU, yes YOU, DEARKA ELTHMAN!" The blonde young man thought to himself, his eyes glowing excitedly.

"I'm ecstatic, for a moment I thought you'd turn me down because I was a co-ordinator." said Dearka coolly, smiling toothily at Miriallia, who just blushed an even deeper shade of red.

"Whether you're a co-ordinator or not, doesn't matter even the slightest to me. What matters is that you're truthful, loving, gentle and loyal." said Miriallia walking up to him and planting a soft and loving kiss on Dearka's cheek. "If you don't mind, I've got a meeting to attend and I'll only be done at lunch, see you."

Dearka followed the auburn-haired girl out of the office where they went their own ways. "Truthgul, loving, gentle and loyal. 4 things, a piece of cake to remember. But doing it is anotehr thing altogether. Oh nevermind, at least you've managed to ask her out." Dearka thought to himself before returning to his bedroom.

"Hey Mirre!" came a voice from down the corridor as the auburn-haired girl was about to proceed into the lift.

"Oh, Cagalli, hi! Heading to the meeting too, are you? You don't look nervous at all," said Miriallia, rasising a questioning eyebrow at Cagalli, and closing the lift doors the minute the blonde girl stepped in.

"Why should I be nervous? There's an answer to everything, and as far as I know I know everythign that's happened, so I should be able to explain no problem." said Cagalli confidently, standing up straight and smiling widely.

"Alright, I'm just worried Lord Uzumi might send Lacus and the others away. I don't know how I'd face Dearka..." however, the auburn-haired girl stopped in mid-sentence when she realised she had just given away her secret about herself and Dearka.

"Dearka? Oh wow, what's happening between you two? You're going steady, right?" asked Cagalli, bombarding Miriallia with questions.

"I haven't even gone out with him yet, so stop jumping to conclusions, and I'd appreciate it if you'd keep the matter under wraps." said Miriallia biting her lower lip and folding her arms across her chest.

"Yes, ma'am!" saluted Cagalli, before stepping out of the lift once the lift door had opened, however, she had to stop in her tracks when she came face to face with Kisaka.

"You two are a disgrace, mixing around with co-ordinators. Especially you, _Princess_ Cagalli, having one of those weird enhanced homosapiens for a boyfriend." hissed Kisaka sarcastically eyeing Cagalli and Miriallia angrily.

"What's it got to do with you jerk? Since you don't want any connections with any co-ordinators, don't even speak about them then. Besides, Kyo is a co-ordinator too, and you used to like her, didn't you?" asked Cagalli, placing her hands on her hips and sneering at Kisaka.

"Well look at the state she's in now! Shameful! To think she's even made the guy who caused her to be like this, her boyfriend!" said Kisaka, laughing madly and shaking his head.

"Shut up, Kisaka, you ought to show some respect to Miss Cagalli!" exclaimed Miriallia hotly, glaring ferociously at Cagalli's former bodyguard.

"Whatever, Misses. Sayonara!" greeted Kisaka maliciously, waving to Miriallia and Cagalli as the lift doors slid shut.

"Asshole, speaks as though he's the king of the world, when actually he's nothing more than a snot of a man!" snapped Cagalli heatedly, before parting ways with Miriallia and entering the meeting room, and taking her place beside her father, Lord Uzumi.

"Good Morning to all! I'm sure you know the reason to why I summoned all of you here today. We're here to discuss the matter of the three co-ordinators who have been granted permission to stay here at Orb." said Lord Uzumi grandly, sitting down before the people at the meeting.

"Why were they granted permission in the first place? Look what's happened to Kyo Yamajika because of one of them! And yet they're still allowed to stay!" shouted one of the Orb officials, obviously a friend of Kyo's.

"I'll have you know that what happened was a mere accident that was also an act of impulse! In addition, the young man who landed her in this state has repented and is rarely seen out of the company of Miss Kyo, in the medical unit!" defended Cagalli, knowing that what she said was a mere fact.

"Still? D'you think he should be let off that easily? Besides, what makes you think those co-ordinators couldn't be putting on some long term act and then strike when we're all off-guard!" asked the very same lady who had fired the earlier question.

"That is a risk we'll have to face if it is decided that they would stay here. However, I do not think that they are such people, as if I'm not wrong they are all close friends of Cagalli's, and I'm sure there are people here besides Cagalli who can prove that." said Lord Uzumi wisely.

"It's true, Lord Uzumi. Miss Cagalli and I trust them fully with our lives, and not even the fact that they are co-ordinators will deter us from communicating with them." said Miriallia determinedly, looking at Cagalli who smiled widely.

"I hear from one of the management officials that a young woman by the name of, Lacus Clyne, came to the office accompanied by Mr. Kira Yamato to ask for permission to stay here, and that permission was granted." said the Lion of Orb, "I've given this situation a lot of thought, and have decided that the three outsiders shall be allowed to seek refuge here. However, I will step up on security measures. Case closed."

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"You know, you really shouldn't try to walk yet, it could be dangerous." said Lacus knowingly, smiling kindly at Kyo who was standing on her feet by her bed, with Yzak supporting her.

"Dr. Ishida didn't say anything about me having to have my bum rooted to the bed. Besides, I need to walk a round for a bit, my legs are getting numb." retorted Kyo, feeling delighted at the fact that she could walk around normally now, although the stitches at her wound still hurt a bit when she used her left leg.

"Yzak, you sure you're not hungry? You skipped lunch yesterday, and skipped breakfast this morning. It's not good you know, I'm already on the road to recovery, and I don't want to see you lying on the other bed beside me in time to come." said Kyo concerned for her platinum blonde companion, who just pursed his lips and furrowed his eyebrows.

"You'd better be glad she cares this much for you, if I were her, I'd have ditched you a long time ago." snorted Kira, folding his arms and rolling his eyes at Yzak, who just glared back.

It seemed that through the two days Yzak had spent with Kyo, he had sort of learned to manage his temper better. He didn't lunge at people over a simple remark or curse them under his breath, the most he'd do was glare back, which was overall, a tremendous improvement.

"Don't be so bad, Kira. I like him just the way he is, and I won't dump him over a small issue. I think he's sweet," said Kyo heatedly, defending Yzak and contradicting Kira's statement.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa! You've certainly got a weird point of view! To think you find an aggressive brute, _sweet_?" snapped Kira, sneering at Yzak, whose breathing was becoming deeper and louder with each second.

A pillow hit Kira squarely in the face, causing him to fall backward onto his bum. However, it wasn't Yzak who had thrown the soft, though large object at the brunette young man, it was Kyo. She looked just as infuriated as Yzak now, and Kira was only grateful she was recovering or she'd probably pounce on him, like how she used to when he annoyed her in the olden days.

"Shut up, Kira Yamato! Yzak is NOT an _aggressive brute_! In addition, so what if I find him sweet? Not all girls like guys who are soft and _annoying_, you know? You're behaving just like the Kira, who's Cagalli's _younger_ brother. Over the past few days you seemed to have been handling things in a more mature manner, who'd think you'd revert to your old annoying self?" scolded Kyo, apparently looking rather furious with Kira.

"Alright, fine! I'm sorry! I just find it kind of hard to believe that you can actually put up with _him_!" apologised Kira, although hardly sounding sincere at all, and feeling Lacus tug at his arm as a signal to him to stop the dispute.

"What's all the racket? We could hear you from outside!" said Miriallia, stepping into the ward and saring around at the quartet of teenagers in there. Her eyes widened when her gaze rested on Kyo, "You can walk! That's brilliant! You'll be well in no time with the progress you're making!"

"Yeah, she's determined to get well as soon as she can, it seems, and yeah, she's definitely on the road to a speedy recovery." said Lacus grinning at Kyo, who had settled herself back on the side of her back, Yzak standing beside her.

"Back to what I was saying, what was all the racket about? It sure was noisy. People would think there was a gang fight going on in here!" exclaimed Miriallia frantically, throwing her hands up in there and looking from Kira to Yzak.

"Kira was just commenting about Kyo and Yzak, and seemed to have offended them both in the midst of doing so, but everything's alright now, no need to fuss about it." explained Lacus, looking at Kira disappointedly, as his behaviour moments ago was unacceptable.

Kira just bowed his head, his eyebrows furrowed as he stared at his feet, feeling rather embarrassed and pissed all at once.

"Kira, can you go and get Athrun here for me, please? I want to spend some time with Kyo," said Cagalli, sitting on the opposite side of Kyo's bed and smiling warmly down at the attractive redhead, who seemed to be making friendship bands out of coloured string.

"_Lazy bum,_" hissed Kira, turning on heel and walking out of the medical unit, and holding the unit door open for Lacus to accompany him on his little errand.

"I heard that, Kira!" barked Cagalli defensively, rolling her eyes before returning her gaze to Kyo and starting a conversation about what Dr. Ishida had been telling her, and approximately when she would be discharged.

"Can't stand Cagalli, she's such a snob. Wish she'd stop bossing people around," snarled Kira, punching his fist into the corridor wall as he walked alongside Lacus, who sighed and just stared out of the passing window panes.

"Maybe the both of you could try and be nice to each other for once. Maybe if you'd stop annoying her she'd treat you better." advised Lacus wisely, looking at Kira, whose eyebrows were still furrowed in fury.

"I won't stop annoying her till she stops bossing me around like a maid! I'm her brother and she treats me like some piece of crap or maybe even a pile of shit!" exclaimed Kira, feeling rather annoyed and unhappy.

"That's the problem that lies between the both of you. Typical sibling rivalry, one of you has to take the first step to making things better between the both of you. She thinks the same way you do, none of you want to make the first move, and the fastest way to start off is for you to make the first move." said Lacus knowingly, reaching up to stroke Kira's cheek with her long slender fingers, knowing that her touch would restore some peace to the brunette young man.

"Otherwise, this dispute between you and Cagalli will never end." continued Lacus, ending her explanation with a deep breath.

The duo passed Cagalli's oak bedroom door and turned the corner to Athrun's room. To their amazement, the door was half ajar, and a sweet and pungent smell was afloat in the air.

"I smell something fishy," said Lacus worriedly, looking up at Kira who had the same anxious playing upon his boyish features.

"It smells fishily sweet to me," said Kira, stepping forward and pushing open the room door, his hand flew to cover the lower half of his face as the pungent aroma grew stronger with each step they took into the bedroom.

"Athrun? Are you here? It's us, Lacus and Kira." Lacus called out, hand still covering his nose and mouth, just like Kira was doing.

There was no answer, and the bedroom was dead silent, the curtains were drawn making the atmosphere seem gloomy and spooky at the same time.

"It smells like chloroform gas in here. If it is, then Athrun might've been knocked cold out by it. But who would throw a can chloroform gas in here, and for what reason?" muttered Kira, walking cautiously into the bedroom.

Just as Kira looked over the other sideof Athrun's bed, he found the blue-haired co-ordinator, lying flat on his stomach, unconscious. There was blood flowing from the back of his head, and his forehead was bleeding badly.

"Oh my, dear lord, Athrun..." gasped Lacus, tears coming to her eyes as she saw the bloody sight of her former fiance, lying unconscious on the ground, what's mroe, she wasn't even sure if he was still alive.

Kira groped around Athrun's neck, searching for his pulse, and finally finding it. Athrun was still alive, but he needed medical attention immediately if he was going to make it.

"We've got to get help quickly! You stay here and watch him, I'll run back to the emdical unit for help!" instructed Kira springing into action and sprinting back down the corridor and turnign left to the medical unit where he burst in without warning, startling his fellow friends.

"KIRA YAMATO! HAVEN'T YOU HEARD OF KNOCKING THE DOOR!" yelled Cagalli, who had been startled out of her wits when her brother had just burst into the unit like that.

"There's no time to knock and sashay in like a model! _Athrun's hurt, and badly too_!" yelled Kira, a line of three nurses followed by Dr. Ishida jogging out of the medical unit, their equipment in hand.

Cagalli's face turned deathly pale at Kira's last sentence, and immediately she sprang to her feet and darted out of the ward toward Athrun's room, Miriallia following suit. As much as Kyo wanted to tag along, she knew she couldn't, and Yzak would've stopped her anyway.

Cagalli darted into Athrun's room before coming to an abrupt halt by the foot of Athrun's bed, her eyes wide as teacups and her entire frame trembling at the sight. Miriallia gasped before supporting Cagalli on the back, as she looked as if she would collapse any second.

"Bad head injury, patient unconscious, assumingly knocked out by chloroform fumes! Bring him to the unit immediately and get him ready for surgery! Hurry!" exclaimed Dr. Ishida, following his fellow nurses as they wheeled Athrun out on a stretcher.

Kira, Lacus and Miriallia had to guide a stoned Cagalli back to the medical unit to wait, as the blonde Orb Princess looked as though she had never learnt to walk before. Kyo and Yzak were still by Kyo's bed, and Kyo was looking rather worried, and Yak was just looking anxious for his fellow friend.

Moments later, Dearka entered the unit looking frantic and worried. "I heard the news from one of the Orb management officials, how's Athrun? Oh yes, Lord Uzumi is on his way to investigate the scene now, but no one knows who did it."

"They're performing sugery on Athrun at the moment, but we're all praying he makes it." said Miriallia, looking on the verge of tears, as she whispered soothing words to Cagalli, who looked as pale as a sheet of unused white paper.

"Athrun! You can't leave me now! You said you'd die on the inside without me, so how can you leave me for good?" wailed Cagalli, falling to her knees on the floor, her weight bringing Miriallia along with her.

"It was _Kisaka_! He's the only one who hates me as much as he hates co-ordinators, only he would be cunning enough to do something like this!" wailed Cagalli, crying bitterly, her tears falling to the floor.

"Cagalli, we've got no evidence that Kisaka did this. Although I have to agree that only he would do something like this, if there's no evidence, we can't sentence him. Besides, for all you know, someone who was against Athrun here might have done it." said Kyo, her voice trembling as she sat on Yzak's lap on her bed.

Kyo snuggled in closer to Yzak, as she felt goosebumps form on her skin when the ar-con blew in their directions. The platinum blonde responded by wrapping his strong arms around her, and burying his face in her soft hair.

"I DON'T CARE ANYMORE! I WANT TO KILL MYSELF! MY LIFE'S OVER, IT'S NOT WORTH LIVING ON WITHOUT ATHRUN!" screamed Cagalli, pulling her hair as streams of tears ran down her cheeks.

"Cagalli, brace up! There's still a chance that Athrun might make it! If you kill yourself now, and he survives, he won't get to see you and neither will you get to see him! So hang in there, a candle of hope still burns for the both of you." said Lacus knowingly, kneeling down beside Cagalli and rubbing the distraught blonde's back.

A bout of nausea had engulfed Cagalli's entire body, and she felt like throwing up everything inside her, from her stomach to her intestines. The Orb Princess suddenly wretched, throwing up her stomach's contents, as Miriallia grabbed a box of tissues to clear up, and for once in his enitre born days, Kira actually took his sister in his arms and cradled her.

Cagalli clung on to her brother, crying uncontrollably into his chest as her hands grasped his arm, hugging it. Lacus looked worriedly down at Kira, who looked equally anxious and saddened by all that had happened.

Everything had happened all too fast, Kyo getting wounded, and was now recovering, each and every one of them finding someone to love, and now Athrun's casualty and Cagalli's wailing fits of depression.

Uzumi Nara Athha swerved tightly into the medical unit a few officials trailing along behind him. The Lion on Orb stopped before Kira, Cagalli, Lacus and Miriallia, who were either sitting or kneeling on the floor.

_Tadoritsuku basho saemo wakaranai_

_Todoku to shinjite ima omoi wo_

_Hashiraseru yo_

_Katachi kaete yuku kokoro mo _

_Kono machi mo_

_Dakedo kienai negai ga aru_

"The culprit has left nothing at the crime scene. Not even fingerprints, it seems that he or she was well prepared and plotted to make their plan foolproof." stated Lord Uzumi sighing and crouching down to see Cagalli eye to eye, as she sat cradled in her brother's lap. "I'm very sorry Cagalli, what happened was beyond my power. But rest assured I will find the culprit."

"It... was Kisaka. Every one... was at the meeting... except... except for him." stammered Cagalli, taking in jerky breaths of air as she stared helplessly up at her adoptive father, who looked absolutely sympathetic.

_Chigau yume wo mite onaji sora_

_Nagameta ano hi chikatta _

_makenaikoto_

_Zutto futari kono te tsunagezuni_

_Umaretekita imi wo _

_Sagashiteta_

"He's our prime suspect for now. Before we atteneded the meeting, Miss Cagalli and I saw him leaving in the lift to one of the lower storeys of the building, and Mr. Athrun's room is on one of the lower storeys. As much as it may seem coincidental, it's a fact that he was the only one not present at the meeting and that he does dislike Miss Cagalli." said Miriallia sternly, looking at Lord Uzumi.

"Yes, but like I have just mentioned, the culprit left no evidence. So we cannot just pinpoint anybody and blame them like that." said Lord Uzumi, his statement making perfect sense and logic.

"When I find the culprit I'll bash him to pulp. Whatever did Athrun do to him?" snarled Dearka, punching his fist into his palm and gritting his teeth.

"Dearka, violence is of no means to solve problems or a way to get revenge. Hurting the other party won't change what has happened." said Kyo knowingly, playing with Yzak's long fingers.

_Tadoritsuku basho saemo wakaranai_

_Todoku to shinjite ima omoi wo _

_Hashiraseru yo_

_Ayamachi mo setsunasa mo koeru toki_

_Nagai ga hikari dakishimeru_

_Mirai wo yobisamashite_

"I'm going to send word to Murrue at PLANTs to tell them what's happened. From there they can pass the news to Chairman Patrick Zala. As much as Chairman Zala hates the lot of us, he still has a right to know about Athrun's condition, he is after all, Athrun's father." said Lacus knowingly, borrowing a laptop from a nearby table, which she assumed belonged to Yzak as the platinum blonde nodded to her.

"There's only one way to find out if it really was Kisaka who did this. Go find him and interrogate him, he has nothing to fear if his conscience is clear." said Kira, tucking a few strands of hair behind Cagalli's ear, as she stood snuggled in his lap, her entire frame still trembling violently.

"As much as I don't want to say this, the first person who came to my mind when I was at the crime scene, was indeed, Kisaka, and I did send one two of my men to search for him, but it seems that he has fled Orb. He's no where in sight, and he didn't any trail either." sighed Lord Uzumi, reaching out and stroking his daughter's cheek.

"If he wasn't the one who did it, then why did he flee from here? I'm certain it's him," said Kyo, fidgetting slightly on Yzak's lap, and playing with the tiny hairs growing on his forearms, though she was careful not to pluck any of them out, or her platinum blonde boyfriend would make a big hoo-ha over it.

Dr. Ishida swerved out of one of the doors in the medical unit, and threw his blood-stained disposable gloves into a trash bin. Kira helped Cagalli to her feet as the others swarmed around the doctor, even Lacus, who had finished sending her email to Murrue.

"Ryuichi Ishida, Orb's most reknowned doctor, I trust you were able to save the young man's life?" asked Lord Uzumi, looking at Dr. Ishida anxiously, waiting for the answer both he and the others were hoping and wishing with all their hearts for.

Dr. Ishida nodded firmly, however, his face still held an apprehensive expression. "The young man is still alive. However, he may go into coma, and I'm afraid, he has lost his memory too. It seems like he was knocked out before being hit by something hard on the head. Although the odds of him waking up are equal to the odds of him going into a coma, his condition is still unstable." explained Dr. Ishida, looking sadly at Cagalli, who had silent tears rolling down her cheeks as she felt constant pain shoot through her chest.

"However, if he does wake up, he may not recognise any of you, but do not be put off my this. Talking to him about the past and explaining his condition to him may help him remember his past, and I advise those who were generally close to him to spend the most time with him." continued Dr. Ishida, looking especially at Cagalli, who just burst into a fit of noisy tears once more.

Athrun was wheeled out of the operating theatre minutes later, his head bound up and his left wrist bandaged, probably because it had fractured when he had tried to break his fall earlier on when he was attacked.

"Lord Uzumi, I have some friends who might be coming over to see Athrun? Can you grant them permission to enter Orb when they arrive?" asked Lacus politely, thought her voice was still shaking with worry.

"Rest assured I will, though I will have the security check them thoroughly." replied Lord Uzumi, smiling down at the pretty pink-headed girl, who held on to Kira's forearm.

Cagalli, Miriallia, Lacus and Kira remained by Athrun's bedside, whispering words to him as he remained unconscious. Of course Kyo and Yzak were present as Kyo was on the bed just beside Athrun, and Yzak wouldn't leave her either.

"Keep talking to him, he might be able to hear you. Just like me, I was able to hear things, but was just to weak to wake up." said Kyo softly, before turning to smile at Yzak, who had been the one talking to her. The redhead attempted to give the platinum blonde a peck on the cheek, however, the platinum blonde looked at her sharply, putting her off.

"Athrun, please come around, I feel so lost without you. If you can hear me please open your eyes and say so. Dr. Ishida says you've lost your memory, and even if you have I will make you remember me, and not only me but everyone else as well." whispered Cagalli, kneeling by his bed, and stroking his cheek and forehead, tucking his blue hair behind his ears.

Whether or not Athrun could hear her, Cagalli didn't know. However, she wished and hoped with all her heart that Athrun would come around.

_A/N Ok, I have been cursing myself for making this happen to Athrun, but it's the plot! Poor Cagalli, I feel so sorry for her. The next chapter will come in with a burst of three new characters, can you guess who they are? Also, the song was"Realise" the "Everlasting Mix" by Nami Tamaki. Anyway, sorry for typo errors. Pls review!_

_**In the next chapter: Since every patient is forced to draw the curtain around each of their beds at night, Cagalli and Miriallia remain with Athrun, while Yzak remains with Kyo. However, in the middle of the night Yzak has a nightmare about the two people he loves and cherishes most, Ezaria Jule and Kyo. Kyo wakes him up and looks worriedly at him and asks him what happened, and finally in the midst of being alone together, the duo finally kiss without regrets, and maybe go on to more than just kissing.In the morning, Lord Uzumi calls Cagalli to his office, and although she's reluctant to leave Athrun, Kyo, Miriallia and Lacus manage to persuade her to do so. However, when she returns to the medical unit, no one is in there with Athrun besides Lacus. However, Lacus seems to be acting a whole lot differently, and refuses to let Cagalli see Athrun. Even the others find it strange, what exactly is going on?**_


	12. A Shattered Heart

Chapter 12 A Shattered Heart

_A/N Dear me, this chapter's going to have plenty of chaos and a whole lot of confusions! But don't worry, everything will come out clear in the end. Right now, I'm just worried I might not be able to finish this fanfic by the end of December. So maybe I'll update every 3 or 4 days. Oh yes, mind you the Yzak&Kyo part later on isn't just a kiss like I said so in my last chappie, and it gets a lot hornier than that, so those who don't like the extra fluff, pls don't read it. Happy reading!_

"Cagalli, you sure you don't want to go back and catch some sleep?" asked Kira, placing a warm hand on his sister's shaking shoulder. The blonde girl had been sitting by Athrun's bed in the exact same position for the past several hours, and she seemed to ignoring the others' advice and questions as well.

"Kira, that question's a stupid one. You know very well how much Cagalli loves Athrun, she feels incomplete without him. So obviously she'd rather stay here." said Kyo knowingly, looking at Kira and raising an eyebrow questioningly.

"At least I bothered to ask," spat Kira, snaking an arm around Lacus's waist and kissing her passionately on the head. Clearly the pink-headed girl was close to exhaustion, her eyelids were heavy and her brain just felt like shutting down. However, there was a tint of worry in her eyes, and she snuggled up to Kira, as he put his arms around her.

"Good night, Lacus and I will go off first, I'm sure she's tired and so am I, but we'll keep Athrun in our prayers, rest assured." said Kira, turning around and strolling with Lacus out of the medical unit.

Yzak's gaze followed them as they went, and when the unit door swung shut he shook his head. "He doesn't sound too convincing to me. For all you know they could just bloody go to sleep without worrying at all."

"Yzak! Don't be so negative about them will you? I'm sure you don't want others to think that way of you! Besides, Lacus was definitely worried, and she was tired as well. As for Kira, I won't say anything about him, but he does care for Cagalli." Miriallia ticked Yzak off, as she knelt down beside Cagalli and began whispering little words.

"He must wake up! I don't want to lose him! He's my everything, he's my life!" said Cagalli, her voice cracking up as Miriallia helped her into a nearby chair, her gaze still not lifting away from Athrun. The bout of nausea was still lingering with Cagalli, and no matter how much she had actually tried to vomit a few times before, nothing came of it.

"Cagalli, I'm sure he'll wake up. Athrun's in the eyes of God, and I'm sure God won't let him die." (_A/N: Sorry, I'm a strong catholic, haha.)_ said Kyo knowingly, looking sadly at Cagalli who was crying uncontrollably once more as she looked down at her prince charming, who was now as limp as wet paper. "If it makes you feel better, rest your head on his chest and listen to his heartbeat. I did that when I was 5, while my mother was hospitalised for Cholera. However, she... _she passed away _the next day."

Kyo's voice trembled slightly at her last few words, but she got a hold on herself and braced up. She was engulfed in the warm embrace of Yzak, as he propped her up on his lap, while he was sitting on the side of her bed.

"Ok my dears, it's nearly midnight, bedtime! And do draw the curtains around your bed for privacy, it doesn't matter if you're all friends, it's a rule in the unit." said the nurse, drawing the curtains around Athrun's bed, and around Kyo's bed.

Even though the curtains were drawn, Cagalli and Miriallia stayed by Athrun's side, and it was the same with Yzak, who had been accompanying Kyo every single night.

The lights were out within seconds, and the entire unit was engulfed in pitch black darkness. Yzak settled into the armchair by Kyo's bed and dozed off within minutes. The redheaded girl watched as her platinum blonde boyfriend snoozed contentedly in the armchair, not even the slightest noise disturbed him.

Kyo pulled the covers up onto her stomach, before resting her head on her pillow and closing her eyes. However, he couldn't seem to sleep, she had a distinct feeling that something wasn't right.

The attractive redhead remained like this for the next hour or to, tossing and turning over again and again, trying to ignore the twitching feeling in her stomach. Something was either not right now, or something bad was going to happen, she was sure of it.

"No... mother... don't leave me... mother." Yzak murmured, getting Kyo's full attention as she turned over to face him in the darkness. It was a mere few seocnds before the young Jule's face screwed up again, "Kyo! No... no... Kyo! Don't go! Kyo... I love you... don't go... KYO!"

The young Jule was close to screaming already, and his frame was shaking so violently it scared Kyo. In addition, the platinum blonde had gripped the armchair so hard, the wooden arm of the chair cracked.

Unsure of what to do, Kyo shook Yzak awake, her red hair falling over his face. "Yzak! Wake up... it's alright! I'm here, I'm not going anywhere." she said, her fair hands stroking his face.

The young Jule awoke with a start, seeing nothing else but the aqua blue eyes of Kyo, staring at him in the darkness. Kyo reached over in the dark and turned on the night lamp, casting a warm atmosphere around them.

"What's wrong? You were having such a violent nightmare, you were talking too, well actually, more like shouting." said Kyo, pulling the curtains aside slightly to see if they had disturbed, Cagalli, Miriallia or Athrun.

Yzak let his head loll backward on the armchair, his breathing deep and heavy the sides of his face bathed in his sweat. Kyo grabbed a few wetwipes from her bedside table and began wiping Yzak's face and neck, before throwing them into the bin.

"You heard everything I said didn't you?" asked Yzak, his voice not sounding as stern and firm as it had always been. For once it sounded more like a child's, not as high-pitched of course, but definitely more innocent and frightened.

"Yes, as a matter of fact, I did. But it's all over, it's alright. I'm here for you," whispered Kyo, sitting facing him on his lap so that her legs had to go through and under the arms of the armchair.

"I'm alive and well, and so is your mother." said Kyo, and immediately Yzak began trembling all over again, unable to speak properly. "Wow, wow, Yzak. Relax, it's ok. Hush now, you're behaving like a lost kitten. Looks like there is a softer side to you after all."

Yzak let Kyo's skilled hands run all over his face, carressing his cheeks and forehead, sometimes even travelling down the side of his head and caressing him behind the ears.

"You don't have to say you love me, because I know you do, and nothing will change the fact that I love you too." said Kyo, looking deep into his deep blue eyes, willing him to just do the same before they lost themselves within each other.

After what seemed like an eternity, their lips met with one another's, and although Yzak had always seemed to be the type to actually dislike romancing with girls, it looks like Kyo had just changed his mind about that.

After a good few minutes of kissing the pair broke off, however, continued with their little courtship frenzy. Yzak had moved on to Kyo's neck, and was kissing, biting and licking her the entire way.

Although the young Jule knew very well he was taking the situation a bit far, and that he should stop in case everything he and Kyo were doing would get him aroused, Kyo didn't seem to mind at all, and she was whimpering every now and then.

"Yzak... we shouldn't be... be doing this..." said Kyo, her head thrown backwards as Yzak was still engrossed with her neck and chin, his hands slowly moving up from her knees to her thighs, slipping under her nightgown.

"Can't help it, _Kyo,_ I want to eat you alive, and I'm going to eat you tonight." snarled Yzak, giving her neck one last lick before picking her up and placing her a little roughly on the bed, before getting on top of her himself. Kyo's hand flicked the switch on the night lamp and it switched off.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

_The next morning 7.15 a.m._

"Kyo, Yzak? Are you awake? the nurse says we can open the curtains now. Hello? Kyo?" called Miriallia from outside the curtains, Kira, Lacus and Dearka standing eagerly behind her.

Apparently, Miriallia had heard strange noises coming from behind Kyo's curtain the night before, and she swore she'd heard moans and whimpers as well. After having told the others, they were all eager to see if their assumptions were true about the pair, maybe Yzak had manged to bed his girlfriend.

Of course, Lacus beoing kindhearted and rather considerate, was telling the others not to poke their noses into other people's privacy, however, did the others listen? Obviously NOT.

"Oh, just open it!" said Dearja impatiently, pulling back the curtains roughly, before his jaw touched the floor at the sight. There on the bed, was Yzak, lying on top of Kyo, his shirt half open, and Dearka assumed Kyo was wearing just her undergarments, as her nightgown was thrown aside on the floor.

"Goodness, they've got to be dead tired to not be able to hear us calling them." said Kira, looking half appalled at the sight.

"Duh, I mean after what they were doing last night, they're probably weared out of all their energy reserves as well. I wonder if any of her bones are broken, I mean with Yzak lying on her, she's probably flattened like a pancake!" laughed Dearka, clamping his hand over his mouth only when he realised that Yzak and Kyo were beginning to stir.

Yzak's eyes fluttered open and when he saw his entire bunch of friends staring wide-eyed at him, his body started trembling once more, he opened his mouth and was about to holler when Kyo clamped her hand over his mouth, and used her free hand to stroke him under the blanket to relax him.

Suddenly Dr. Ishida swerved into view, and dropped the stack of files he was holding when his gaze fell upon his female patient and her boyfriend. "Why... never in my life have I seen something like this!"

Dearka was laughing about the incident the entire morning, and Kira couldn't help but join in, to Lacus's dismay, and Miriallia was just shaking her head about it and accompanying Cagalli in talking to Athrun.

As for Kyo and Yzak, Dr. Ishida had told Kyo that she was well enough to be allowed outside the unit during the day, since she was able to pull off such an audaciously vigorous act with Yzak, however, she would have to come back and stay in the unit at night for further monitoring before she could be fully discharged. In addition, Kyo and Yzak were told to follow Dr. Ishida o his office where he would give the duo a lesson on the pros and cons of pre-marital sex.

Meanwhile, Lord Uzumi entered the medical unit, walking briskly towards Cagalli. "Cagalli, could I have a word with you in my office?"

"I don't want to leave Athrun..." replied Cagalli, shaking her head slowly, and still not taking her gaze off her blue-haired boyfriend. Cagalli's pale and trembling hands were clutching tightly onto Athrun's wrist, refusing to loosen their grip.

"Cagalli, go on. Athrun's in good hands, we'll be watching over him." said Miriallia encouragingly and reassuringly, patting Cagalli lightly on the shoulder, in an attempt to persuade the blodne Orb Princess to spend some quality time with her father.

"I don't want to lose him. My life would be nothing without Athrun," said Cagalli stonedly, still looking longingly down at the blue-haired co-ordinator, who still looked ever so handsome despite his motionless state.

"You mind losing Mr. Athrun, but you wouldn't mind losing your father if he was in such a state, eh?" said Lord Uzumi, sounding kind of hurt that Cagalli would rather accompany her unconscious boyfriend, than just sacrifice a mere ten minutes to talk to him.

"Cagalli, Lord Uzumi's right. Nothing's going to happen to Athrun while you're gone, we assure you that everything will be fine. I'm sure Lord Uzumi has may important things to tell you, so run along now, Cagalli." said Lacus knowingly, looking kindly down at the blonde, who looked on the verge of tears.

"You sure everything will be ok?" questioned Cagalli, looking from Miriallia to Kira, her eyes shining with pearly tears.

"Come on, don't be silly! Athrun's our friend too, d'you think we'd let anything untoward happen to him?" asked Kira bluntly, trying to convince his sister to go along with the Lion of Orb for a while.

"I'll go... but only for a while..." said Cagalli, walking slowly up to her adoptive father and following him out of the ward.

"Oh right, I nearly forgot. I've got to mend my bedroom cabinet, but I would need a hand though." said Kira, scratching his head and thinking hard.

"I'll help. I've always had a knack for fixing stuff, but of course, my skill at that can never surpass Athrun's. That guy can build anything, he made a robotic bird once, but I think he discarded it." said Dearka, smiling warmly at Kira, who trailed out of the ward, leading them both to his room, leaving Miriallia and Lacus standing by Athrun's bed.

"Ladies, would you mind clearing the unit for a while? We need to tend to this patient," said a kind nurse, gesturing toward Athrun and hurrying the two girls out of the medical unit.

"Since we're here and we've got nothing to do, how about we go for breakfast? My stomach could use with some work." suggested Miriallia, looking eagerly at Lacus, who gave the auburn-haired girl's question some thought before nodding in reply.

The two girls headed down to Orb's basement cafeteria, enjoying the aroma of cooking food, pastries and coffee. They came to a halt before the pastries stall, admiring all the cute and delicious looking pastries, puffs and cakes.

"Ooh, you should really try their Strawberry Shortcake, it's simply scrumptous!" said Lacus, ordering one for herself, and a simple smoothie that was the day's special.

It wasn't long before Miriallia dittoed Lacus's order for herself, and joined the sweet pink-headed girl at a nearby table. Lacus had already begun tucking in to her slice of Strawberry Shortcake, and was savouring the taste in her mouth.

"Things have begun really complicated lately. I've never really understood how everything actually began. First Athrun popped up, claiming his name was Alex Dino, then you, Dearka and Lacus come along, and Kyo gets shot. Now Athrun's unconscious, and we're all back to square one, like when we were worrying for Kyo." sighed Miriallia, taking a sip of her smoothie.

"Well, it's really not that complicated if you understood just the beginning." replied Lacus, swallowing ehr first mouthful of the savoury cake and looking up at Miriallia, who seemed eager to listen. "Athrun's father is the Chairman of PLANTs, Patrick Zala. So Chairman Zala summoned Athrun one day and sent him here to Orb, on a mission involving the assassination of the Orb Princess, who is of course, Cagalli. However, while Athrun was here, it seems that it only took a week to make him and Cagalli fall head over heels in love with one another."

Lacus took a quick sip of her own smoothie before continuing with her long, though not as complicated as it sounds, explanation. "Then, I found out from one of the PLANTs officials about Athrun's little mission, in fact I had sent him off that very day he left PLANTs. Knowing the naked truth, I set out to stop Athrun along with Dearka and Yzak, who actually only followed me to protect me. And then, I met the bunch of you, and then it continues from here."

"So you, Dearka and Yzak have been good all along!" said Miriallia, taking a large bite out of her cake, which would have shocked anyone who had seen her, as I don't think anyone would've expected a dainty girl to take such a large and unladylike bite out of her food.

"Of course? Have we done anything bad that was unworthy of your trust?" said Lacus smartly, winking playfully at Miriallia and smiling toothily, before continuing with her speech. "Besides, if we hadn't come along, would you have met Mr. _Dearka Elthman_? Who is now the _hearthrob_ of your life?"

"Quit with the teasing, I haven't even had a chance to go out with him yet. Besides, you yourself seems to get along well with _Kira. _I've noticed a change in his behaviour ever since you came along. He's not so annoying and immature anymore," retaliated Miriallia, her cheeks still red from Lacus's teasing.

"Oh yes, I've been meaning to ask you this, I hope you're ok with it though." said Miriallia uneasily, clearing her throat and beginning on a question to clear her doubts. "Isn't Athrun your fiance? I mean don't you mind being him being with Cagalli?"

"I've been asked that Kira as well." smiled Lacus, finishing off the last bit of her cake and drinking her smoothie. "My relationship with Athrun is in the path now. It was all arranged anyway, we were engaged when we were 14, two years ago. Just then, I didn't really care much, all I knew was that my father was attaching me to some son of the Chairman of PLANTs. Besides, Athrun never really came to see me much, he was always busy at ZAFT or with assignments given to him by his father. However, I was always delighted whenever he came. To be truthful, the both of us were merely just very good friends, nothing more than that. We'd never done anything more than kissing each other on the cheek."

"So the both of you are clean through with each other? I mean now that Athrun is with Cagalli, and you seem to be getting along quite well with Kira." said Miriallia, drinking up her smoothie as though she had never had any fluid for the past several days.

"Yeah, I guess so." replied Lacus, finishing off ehr smoothie as well. "Since we're both done, how about heading back to the medical unit? What say you?"

"Sounds like a brilliant idea," answered Miriallia, getting up and tucking the cafeteria chair back udner the table and strolling off alongside Lacus.

Meanwhile, up outside the medical unit, a little din was going on.

"Lacus! What're you doing? Let us in, my purse is in there! Besides, I'm due for a checkup!" yelled Kyo hotly, banging on the window of the medical unit. Not only was she angry that Lacus wasn't letting Yzak and Kyo into the unit, what's more, Athrun was awake!

"What the hell is wrong with her? Athrun may be her fiance, but I thought she had broken off with him! Besides, even if she hasn't broken off completely with him, there's no reason she should hog him to herself! We're his friends too, you know?" exclaimed Yzak heatedly, banging on the medical unit door as well, which was locked.

"Goodness! Have you lost your mind? Tell me you're not going to let anyone in there! When Cagalli returns and sees that Athrun is awake, she'll throw a fit if you don't let her in!" shouted Kyo loudly, banging even harder on the window of the unit, the window panes rattling.

"What on Earth and on PLANTs is going on here? Thw two of you are shouting like mad hooligans, we could hear you two corridors away!" exclaimed Kira, swerving around the corner into view with Dearka, who looked just as confused and eager to know what was going on.

"You won't believe it! That pink-haired girl, you call sweet, won't let anyone inside the medical unit! And look! Athrun's awake too! She's gone nuts I tell you, NUTS!" hollered Kyo, feeling as if she was going to throw a tantrum and burst into flames.

Kira peeped into the medical unit and sure enough, there was Lacus, standing by Athrun's bed and talking to him, not paying any attention to the racket that was going on outside.

"Lacus! Let us in, please? We want to see Athrun too, you know? You'd better cut this act before Cagalli comes or you'll be dead meat when she finds out!" said Kira loudly, hoping that his little girlfriend would respond.

To no avail, Lacus kept her back turned to the bunch of them yelling outside, focusing on talking to Athrun.

"My gosh! I'm going deaf? What in the world are you people doing?" asked Miriallia, coming around the corner, Lacus alongisde her, and behind them, was Cagalli, whose cheeks were tear-stained.

"Miriallia, Lacus, Cagalli! Good thing you're here, Lacus won't... _hang on a sec_. _How did you get out here_?" asked Kyo stunned, looking at Lacus Clyne standing before her with the auburn and blonde haired girls.

"Yeah, this is confusing. How can you be _in there_, and _out here all at once_?" asked Dearka, looking from inside the ward to the corridor outside, oevr and over again.

"What in the world?" said Miriallia, grabbing her two friends and walking up to the medical unit window and staring in for herself, sure enough a girl, looking just like a cloned version of Lacus, stood there talking to a _conscious Athrun_!

"Athrun! ATHRUN!" screamed Cagalli, pressing her face to the medical unit window, tears flowing down her cheeks continuously. The blodne girl with an overwhelming urge to get into the unit, and throw her arms around her blue-haired prince charming, however, to her horror, when she tried pushing open the unit door, she foudn that it was _locked_.

"No... NO! Athrun!" screamed Cagalli, banging on the unit door and crying uncontrollably, as her efforts to get into the medical unit failed hopelessly.

"Whoever you are in there! You're a BLOODY BIMBO! You are definitely NOT Lacus Clyne! Now let us all in or we'll break the door down!" bellowed Yzak through the window glass, his breath frosting the glass up.

"That's it, you asked for it! Move aside Cagalli, we'll help you in. Altogether on the count of 3!" yelled Dearka in unison with Yzak's plan, "1, 2, 3! YEEEAAARGH!"

With a mighty kick, Dearka, Yzak and Kira rammed through medical unit door, the door breaking off its hinges and falling with a crash into the medical unit.

Everyone rushed into the unit like a stampede, all eager to see Athrun and talk to him. However, the barbaric frenzy stopped when Lacus spoke.

"Mia Campbell, what are you doing here?" asked Lacus, facing what looked like a duplicate of her. Lacus's expression was stern, and she didn't look at all pleased with what was going on.

The girl turned around and smiled, "Visiting Athrun of course. I came earlier with Murrue Ramius and Andrew Wattfeld."

"You know her? Are the two of you _twins_ or something?" asked Miriallia, looking from Lacus to mia Campbell, who was still smiling innocently.

"No, we're not. She's one of my fans, a big fan I should say." said Lacus, her expression only gorwing sterner by the second. "Mia's sort of a crazy fangirl, crazy till she even tries to impersonate me."

"Mia's not crazy," said a voice from behind the bunch of teenagers. Athrun had spoken, and all eyes were on him now. "She told me everything about you guys."

"Oh, Athrun! I thought I'd lost you!" screamed Cagalli, throwing her arms around Athrun, and kissing him on the cheek, tears flowing silently from her her honey-brown orbs.

"Get away from me, you _bitch_!" yelled Athrun, roughly pushing Cagalli away and delivering a stinging slap across her left cheek. "You're a bloody _prostitute! _And the rest of you are just crap! I can't belive you were actually my friends before! Since I can't remember anything, it's an oppurtunity to start afresh."

Cagalli had fallen backwards onto the floor, and was now looking horrorstruck clutching her stinging cheek. Some of her tender skin had peeled off, and her skin looked rather inflamed now.

"Athrun! What're you talking about? What prostitute what crap, and why did you slap your girlfriend!" exclaimed, Dearka staring shocked at his blue-haired co-ordinator friends.

"Good lord! She _was _my _girlfriend_?" asked Athrun, staring disgustedly at Cagalli, and making a face. "Good thing life gave me a chance. Now I can make new and better friends, can't believe I was actually good friends with a heap of crap."

Out of the blue, Cagalli gave a strangled cry of anguish, ebfore reaching for a nearby glass teapot and smashing it against the floor, before grabbing a shard of glass and attempting to slit her wrist.

Kira dived forward and stopped his sister, holding her hand firmly away from her body or her other arm.

"I DON'T WANT TO LIVE ANYMORE!" screamed Cagalli, writhing about in Kira's arms, and feeling jets of hurt and pain shoot through her chest. The bout of nausea within her was getting worse and she felt as if her intestines were tying themselves into doubled knots.

"You big fat liar! You vixen! What've you been telling Athrun since he woke up! Dr. Ishida said that whatever you tell him for the first few moments are crucial! Have you been telling him pure lies!" hollered Kyo, for the first time unleashing the monster within her and attempting to lunge out at Mia, if not for Miriallia and Yzak restraining her.

"Mia has never lied to me! She's incredibly sweet, and she was the only one around when I woke up!" shouted Athrun angrily, clutching on to Mia's forearm, the moment she was within his reach.

Cagalli's heart seemed to have shattered like thin and fragile glass, and the shards of her broken heart were like poking her from within. Athrun had slapped her and called her both a bitch and a prostitute.

Seeing him in a motionless and helpless state was already heartbreaking enough, but now that he was awake, and she wanted so much to hold him and cradle him in her arms, that love that they once shared so deep had now been vanquished.

"Cagalli! CAGALLI! GET A HOLD OF YOURSELF!" yelled Kira, hoisting his squirming and screaming sister into his arms bridal style and jogging with her out of the medical unit, the otehrs all trailing along behind.

Kira burst into his own room andclutched a protesting and screaming Cagalli close to him, so she wouldn't wriggle free and fall to the floor.

"SOMEONE GO INTO THE BATHROOM AND FILL THE BATHTUB WITH **COLD** WATER! NOW! HURRY! I DON'T THINK I CAN HOLD HER FOR MUCH LONGER!" yelled Kira, struggling to keep Cagalli in his arms, who was screaming her voice hoarse and crying loudly, and sheding her tears of pure heartbreak and anguish.

Lacus and Miriallia hurried into the bathroom and did as Kira had instructed, although they really didn't know what Kira had in mind with the bathtub of cold water, which was icy cold.

"The tub's ready! Now what exactly are you going to do?" asked Lacus darting out of the bathroom with Miriallia and making way from Kira, who squeezed his way in.

With a big splash, Kira dropped Cagalli inside the tub of ice-cold water. The blonde Orb Princess remained submerged in the temperate water for a number of seconds, struggling wildly, before she surfacerd spluttering, though not screaming anymore.

Cagalli sat up in the bathtub and threw her arms around Kira's waist, so as not to let herself slip underwater again.

"Looks like you still treasure your life, huh?" asked Kira, looking down at his sister, who was shaking madly from the temperature of the water. Cagalli's eyes grew wide for a moment before, she began screaming again.

Kira who didn't seem at all shocked by her reaction, forcefully pushed his sister back underwater again before hoisting back out of the tub and into his arms once more. Cagalli clung on to Kira's neck, shivering all over, tears rolling down her cheeks and mixing with the droplets of tubwater on her face.

"What did you do that to her for?" asked Lacus, who looked absolutely appalled by Kira's sudden, rough and cruel actions toward his sister, who was now sitting on the floor udner Miriallia's care.

The auburn-haired girl had grabbed a towel and was now drying Cagalli's hair, and whispering soothing words to her. The Orb Princess sneezed a couple of times, before bursting into tears once more, although she wasn't struggling or screaming anymore.

"Think of me as cruel, I know, bullying her like that. But don't forget I grew up with her, I know what her tantrums or extreme behaviours are like, and what you just witnessed was one of her extreme behaviours." explained kira sighing, and looking sadly at Cagalli, regretting what he had just done.

"When she was young, she used to throw massive tantrums, and she would never cool down. Kisaka would throw her into a tub of cold water, and she would surface spluttering and remaining silent, clutching on to anything that was nearest to her. Cagalli never knew how to swim, which meant she had a constant phobia of water. If I hadn't done what I had just done, she would have been screaming till she conked out." sighed Kira, walking toward his sister and crouching down in front of her, looking into those heartbroken and teary eyes of hers.

Cagalli's cheeks were flushed, and her eyes held an expression of extreme heartbreak. She had loved him so dearly, with all her heart and soul, but Athrun had rejected her so forcefully and clearly just minutes before.

The blonde Orb Princess had been overjoyed when she had seen him awake when she was outside the medical unit. However, that happiness was only to be shattered the moment she came in touch with him again.

"Cagalli, I hate to see you this way. What happened has been a big blow to you. You're probably scarred for life," said Kira, looking sorrily at his sister, who had constant streams of tears rolling down her cheeks, as she beared with the pain of heartbreak and hurt.

The patches of skin on Cagalli's left cheek where Athrun's hand hit her, were now looking rather raw and sore. Kira could imagine the pain she had felt not only on her cheek when he had shouted at her and slapped her, but in her heart as well.

A wet and cold Cagalli rammed herself into Kira, crying bitterly once more, as she snuggled up to her brother, enjoying the warmth his body was emitting. Kira kissed Cagalli's head tenderly, looking up at Lacus whose eyes were filled with tears.

Later in the day, Kyo had gone for her checkup, and Dr. Ishida had declared her healthy and fully recovered. The news didn't make Kyo ecstatic, as her heart was overcome with grief for Cagalli.

Dr. Ishida had let Yzak and Kyo off for what they did during the night with nothing else but a warning, as the duo had claimed they hadn't gone any further than heavy petting, and Dr. Ishida did a check on Kyo and found that they had indeed been telling the truth.

For the rest of the day, everyone avoided the corridor leading to the medical unit, as things had changed so drastically, that Athrun could barely even be called their friend.

Cagalli had been busy crying her eyes out and simply refused to eat anything. The others accompanied her in her room, trying desperately to console her. However, nothing they did, could ease the pain the blonde girl felt in her heart.

_A/N Ok, I know this chapter was a little extreme, but nonetheless it's all in the plot! And sorry, I did say there would be three enw characters, right? Well there are, they're Murrue, Andrew and Mia, but sorry I couldn't put anything in about Murrue and Andrew, there will be some of them in the next chapter! Sorry for typo errors and pls review!_

_**In the next chapter: Murrue and Andrew are saddened and horrified about what happened to Cagalli because of Mia Campbell, and regret allowing her to come along with them. Cagalli grieves continuously over Athrun, and indulges in self-mutiliation. Miriallia cries again over Cagalli, and is consoled by Dearka. Kyo, Yzak, Dearka, Kira and Miriallia head down to the medical unit to tick Mia off, only to find that Athrun is fiercely protective of her. Also, Cagalli refuses to give up loving Athrun because of one thing, what is it? **_


	13. A Twist Of Fate

Chapter 13 Twist Of Fate

_A/N Chapter up! I know I'm very evil to Cagalli, making her suffer like that, but sorry, this fanfic would have no spice if I didn't torture her. Oh yes, if you're wondering why Murrue was at PLANTs, she was there with Andrew, haha! And of course, I'm making Mia worse than she actually is. In GSD, Mia is just plain annoying, I'm sure she wouldn't go as far as to steal Athrun from anybody. Though many of you might contradict my opinion of Mia, it's really what I think of her. Anyway, happy reading! _

"Hey, what're you pipsqueaks doing all cramped into one room like that? Athrun's awake you know? All we saw was _Mia Campbell_ in the medical unit." said Andrew Wattfeld, knocking on Cagalli's bedroom door, before poking his head in and entering with Murrue Ramius.

"Andy, they're not pipsqueaks! It's really good to see you guys again, Lacus, Dearka and Yzak." said Murrue smiling toothily, her long chocolate brown hair falling over her shoulders, as she sat down in a chair beside Kira, who was apparently, sitting on the floor with Cagalli's head buried into his shoulder.

"For some reason, my heart seems to have dropped a notch the moment I entered this room. The atmosphere here seems a little gloomy," stated Andrew, looking around at the bunch of teenagers, seated cross-legged on the carpeted floor of Cagalli's opulent and well furnished bedroom.

"Things have been down low lately." sighed Lacus, looking up at her two adult friends from PLANTs, who looked at her questioningly, eager to know what the pink-headed girl meant by her most recent statement.

"Yeah, and you can blame it all on that _vixen_ Mia Campbell." hissed Dearka, his fists clenched and he punched them straight into the carpeted floor, making a few of his knuckles crack loudly.

"Oh dear, I smell something fishy, and it's definitely not me, I do smell sometimes, but only after work when I haven't had a bath. What's that annoying pest of a girl done now?" asked Andrew, raising an eyebrow at Lacus, whose face fell.

"What she's done is irreversible! I'm sure you know that Lacus sent you a detailed email regarding Athrun's condition, about him being ambushed, attacked and that he was suffereng from amnesia, right?" asked Kyo, not minding the fact that she hadn't even introduced herself to the two new friends they had all just made.

"Yeah, we knew he had lost his memory. But what's all this got to do with _Mia_?" asked Murrue curiously, eyeing each and every one of them suspiciously.

"Wait, wait, wait. Hang on a second. Before we jump into damn the story, why don't we start from the bloody bottom about how Athrun actually came here on his mission, and how Cagalli and all of us came into damn the picture? If not they'll be shooting questions in the middle of our bloody explanation." snapped Yzak heatedly, steaed comfortably against Cagalli's bed, Kyo sitting beside him on his right.

"Yzak's got a point. If we start from the beginning, Murrue and Andy will be less confused. But first let me introduce all of you." said Lacus knowingly, the pink-haired girl cleared her throat, "This is Miriallia Haww, Lord Uzumi's personal secretary. This is Kyo Yamajika, Orb's top female soldier. This is Kira Yamato, and last but certainly not least, the girl who's sobbing away into Kira's shoulder, who is also Kira's twin sister, is Cagalli Yula Athha, Princess of Orb."

"Wow, that was long-winded. You sounded as if you were introducing characters in a play or story, rather than just doing a informal introduction." said Miriallia, looking surprised at Lacus, who forced a grin.

"Well, it all began when Athrun was sent here to Orb, to assassinate Princess Cagalli. However, she found him in the forest and kindly took him in secretly, not knowing that he was plotting to kill her. Athrun disguised his identity, saying his name was Alex Dino. Athrun's presence managed to stay a secret for a week, until he was found out. Also, during that one week where he was stuck with Cagalli, both fell for one another, and they fell hard too." said Lacus, turning to Miriallia for a continuation of her explanation.

"Lord Uzumi then granted Athrun permission to stay at Orb, and after that things were alright for about a day or two, then Lacus, Dearka and Yzak came along. Yzak still wanted to kill Cagalli after finding out that Athrun had dropped the idea of his mission, however, Kyo being Cagalli's bodyguard, got in the way when Yzak tried to shoot her." said Miriallia stopping, when she noticed Murrue and Andrew were looking puzzled at Yzak and Kyo, who were cuddled up with each other on the floor.

"We'll tell you Kyo and Yzak's little love story later on." said Dearka, chuckling as he looked at Yzak who gave him a penetrating start that shut the copper-tone skinned blonde up.

Miriallia giggled slightly before carrying on, "While Kyo was unconscious, everyone was plunged into state of anxiety and worry, and it so happens that Yzak, who hardly ever apologised to anyone, apologised to Kyo over and over again while she was unconscious, ad he stayed with her throughout the night. When she woke up in the morning, she was touched by his actions and so their little story goes on..." Miriallia stopped, noticing that Yzak was getting fired up very quickly already.

"After all that, things went on quite smoothly again, and Lacus and the others were granted permission to seek refuge here. Then came Athrun's casualty. However, we are all blaming Mia because it seems that when Athrun woke up no one was with him, besides Mia. All of us seemed to be busy with somethign else at that point of time. When we all got back to the unit, she refused to let us in and we had to break down the door. However, in our absence Mia seemed to have spun a web of tales and lies about all of us, and since Athrun lost his memory, he turned against all of us, believing in Mia's words." explained Kyo, looking hafl infuriated and half sad at the same time.

"And because of Mia's words and actions, not only has Athrun turned against us, but he's rejected Cagalli as well. She's heartbroken right now, she hasn't eaten anything since yesterday. Nothing we do can console her." hissed Kira, his body shaking in fury, as he felt Cagalli start crying uncontrollably into his shoulder once more.

Murrue and Andrew looked appalled and stunned. Both were wide-eyed and staring blankly into space.

"This is unbelievable! Not only is that Mia girl annoying, she's cunning too!" exclaimed Andrew hotly, catapulting to his feet and slamming his fist into the palm of his other hand. "See, Murrue! I told you it was a bad idea letting her tag along with us!"

"If you found it such a bad idea, Andy, then why didn't you slog your guts out trying to stop me from letting her come along? Obviously, you really didn't bother much." retorted Murrue, folding her arms and pursing her lips.

"CAGALLI! WHAT'RE YOU DOING!" screamed Miriallia, tugging the penknife Cagalli was clutching between her fingers from her.

Apparently, while everyone was talking, Cagalli had stolen the oppurtunity to grab a penknife cut gashes along her left forearm, torturing herself. Although the gashes weren't deep, they still bled, and it would leave scars on her arm if they weren't cleaned and bandaged.

"Oh my gosh! Someone grab the first aid kit!" exclaimed Kira, holding Cagalli's bleeding arm away from her other hand, as the blonde girl was busy trying to pick at her wounds now.

Cagalli seemed to show no signs of pain at all, and her face still held that blank and stoned expression. However, the only sign of emotion she showed were the pearly tears in her honey-brown eyes.

"I'm on it!" said Miriallia, grabbing the first aid kit and sitting down beside Cagalli and beginning to wipe Cagalli's gashes clean with gauze swabs dabbed with some anti-septic cream. "Cagalli, why're you doing this to yourself? Cutting yourself with a penknife!"

"It doesn't matter anymore... nothing matters anymore. My life is worthless..." muttered Cagalli, tears streaming out of her eyes, as she stared up at Miriallia, speaking for the first time in hours.

"I'm going to slice that Mia into a human sashimi! It's all her doing! She's got such a bloody big mouth! She's a big fat liar too! Nothing she told Athrun about us were facts! Cagalli being a prostitute... SHE'S GONE WAY TOO FAR OUT!" hollered Kyo, slamming her fist right into carpeted floor, and even though the floor was carpeted it was still hard.

"Wow, wow! Cool it! We're all furious with Mia right now, but there's no need to throw a tantrum here." said Dearka smartly, looking disapprovingly at Kyo. Andrew wash shaking his head slowly at Dearka as he thought that the copper-tone skinned young man's words were pretty much hypocritical, as since when was Dearka ever well-behaved? Well ok, maybe he improved after meeting Miriallia, but still?

"Looks like you've picked up some bad habits from Yzak," Dearka added teasingly, making the attractive redhead suck in her lower lip and fold her arms tightly across her chest.

Cagalli was crying loudly again, calling out Athrun's name over and over. The blonde Orb Princess had been sheddng so much tears that Lacus was worried that Cagalli might get dehydrated. After all, the blonde girl hadn't had anything to eat or drink for the past 12 hours or so.

Miriallia had finished bandaging Cagalli's arm neatly, and was watching has her best friend cried pitifully into her carpeted floor. Cagalli wept on and on, taking in jerking breaths of air every now and then before continuing with her blubbering.

"Excuse me," said Miriallia, standing up to full height and walking toward the room door. However, the auburn-haired girl burst into a fit of tears just as she was a few feet from the door, and broke into a jog before exitting the bedroom.

"Sorry, I'll go after her." said Dearka, excusing himself as well, and slipping out of the bedroom door before chasing after Miriallia, whose cries could still be heard down along the corridor.

"That's the way to go, Dearka! Mr. Elthman to the rescue!" cheered Andrew, who was waving his fist in the air in the bedroom door's direction, however, it was only second before he was asked to shut up by Murrue, who seemed to be taking the current situation seriously.

Miriallia stumbled and fell into a sitting position in a secluded corner at the very end of the corridor. Hugging her legs close to her body, she buried her head into her knees, crying profusely.

Cagalli and her had been close friends ever since Miriallia had started working at Orb, and they were always sharing weal and woe with one another. They were like sworn sisters, confiding in each other whenever they needed someone to talk to.

But now, Cagalli was in such a sorry and devastated state. She had loved Athrun with all her heart, placing every bit of her trust in him, willing to give up her life for him if fate forced her to. Yet now, Mia had to come along out of nowhere and ruin the love they had forged and built together.

Why was fate robbing Cagalli of the chance to be the one she loved and trusted most? Why? Life was already hard enough for Cagalli, being the Orb Princess many things were expected of her, and further more she was Lord Uzumi's successor, the only heir to the throne of Orb once Lord Uzumi passed on.

The reason why Cagalli had always been so tomboyish and rough was because things that had happened to her in her life, had forced her to live life on her own, to be independant and rely on no one else but herself. But when Athrun came along and showed her the true meaning of life, making her feel as if she didn't have to feel so alone all the time, Cagalli finally softened up a little and let Athrun love her.

Yet now, when she had finally learned to appreciate the friends and the love she was receiving from the people who cared for her, fate had to take a violent turn and steal the one most precious to her, Athrun Zala.

"Mirre? Are you alright?" asked Dearka, finally finding the auburn-haired girl, crouching down in the secluded corner, only her green eyes and part of her auburn-hair visible in the semi-darkness.

Miriallia just sniffled in reply, letting more tears fall from her eyes and hit the marble floor. It was only then that she realised how beautiful the marble on the floor was, black marble with swirls in them, neatly polished and shining brightly.

However, when the auburn-haired girl lifted her head, her gaze met with an even more beatiful thing, the most beautiful thing she had seen in her entire life, Dearka Elthman. He had the most intoxicating lavender eyes and his blonde locks seemed so alluring it just made Miriallia want to reach up and run her fingers through them.

"I know how you feel. Depressed because you couldn't do anything to help Cagalli. Sad because you hate seeing her this way. I may be a guy but I have feelings too. I can sense how people feel and I can _feel for people too_." said Dearka tenderheartedly, stroking Miriallia's blotched cheek gently, using his thumb to wipe away her tears.

"Things have just been twisting in odd directions lately, and it seems that only Kyo and Cagalli understand me. But Cagalli's now so stoned to speak, and Kyo's too busy spending most of her time with Cagalli and Yzak." sobbed Miriallia, bursting into a fit of tears too.

Dearka felt a little downhearted that Miriallia hadn't really taken much notice of how much he cared for her, but nevertheless, at least she wasn't rejecting him. "You forgot one person. _I _understand you too. You may not have noticed but I care about you a whole lot as well. I care so much sometimes I even think I _love _you." he added.

Miriallia looked up into the kind and dulcet face of Dearka's, noticing the small smile playing on his lips and the warmth his lavender orbs were projecting.

"I'll be here for you... _always_." said Dearka, leaning forward and enveloping Miriallia in his warm and secure embrace, feeling her shiver slightly before she cuddled up closer to him, her arms gripping his shirt tightly.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Who says we go down there and swipe Mia off her feet?" asked Andrew, leading the bunch of people like a leader of an angry mob. However, his question didn't go unanswered, most of them wanted to give Mia a piece of their minds.

"She's such a bimbo! Lying to Athrun about Cagalli and us! She's the reason Athrun's rejected Cagalli and refuses to talk to any of us!" hissed Miriallia, her cheeks still tear-staiend as she had just returned to the bedroom minutes before with Dearka.

"I'll show that Mia! I'll KILL her!" bellowed Kira, slamming his fist into the wall behind him, breathing just like Yzak when the platinum blonde was deeply infuriated from the inside out.

"Kira! Don't be rash! Killing her won't reverse things, besides, you've seen how accustomed Athrun is with Mia, if we kill her it'll only give Athrun a worst impression of us." said Lacus knowingly, looking rather disapproving of what was going on. "Anyway, I'm not with you guys if you're going to use violence as a means of castigating Mia. I'm against violence, I think's it's sinful."

"Fine, we won't lay a single finger on her or pluck out a single strand of her hair! But I assure you I'll holler at her till my voice goes hoarse if needed!" said Dearka firmly, looking and Miriallia and nodding at her.

Cagalli was sitting away in the corner of the room, hugging her legs and looking as devastated as before. She was never going to stop loving Athrun, never. She couldn't stop loving him, she had a valid reason for it. If she did stop loving Athrun, it wouldn't be fair to someone.

"Then what're we waiting for! Let's go!" said Andrew, standing up and leading the bunch of teenagers out of the bedroom in one row, Dearka, Miriallia, Yzak, Kyo and Kira.

"La la la la la la la, the ants go marching in!" sang Andrew, leading the row of teenagers, Murrue trailing along behind the bunch. Lacus had decided to stay behind in Cagalli's bedroom to keep watch over her.

"Be quiet Andy! How old are you anyway? 32?" snapped Murrue, clearly feeling very annoyed by her partners childish and noisy behaviour.

"Whatever you say, ma'am!" replied Andrew, turning around to face her before saluting and winking at her.

The bunch of them came to a halt outisde the medical unit, all of them raring to go in and scream at Mia Campbell.

"Now, let's see. Why don't you guys go in, and Murrue and I will stay outside in case Mia tries to make some big escape." said Andrew smartly, standing about one and half metres away from the medical unit doorway.

"Yeah right, you can stay outside, but it's not because you're guarding the door. It's because you're _scared_." snarled Kira teasingly, laughing maliciously at Wattfeld, who just snorted and folded his arms.

"Wait, before we go in we must make sure we don't attract unwanted attention, such as Dr. Ishida and the nurses for instance. We've got to plan things out." said Dearka knowingly, licking his lips before cocking his head to one side.

"What _is_ there to plan? All we have to do is go in there, and give Mia a piece of our minds!" said Yzak hotly, turning to face his comrade and folding his arms.

But before anyone else could say anything, Miriallia had already pulled open the medical unit door and trudged in along with Kira, who was looking extremely furious.

Mia was busy feeding Athrun some porridge, and was giggling as she did so as some of the porridge had spilled down Athrun's chin onto his front. The pink-haired girl grabbed a few tissues and began cleaning up before she realised that she and Athrun weren't alone.

"Goodness, your feeding is way better than Mia's." Kyo whispered to Yzak, who rolled his eyes, a slight tint of pink coming to his cheeks as he remembered feeding Kyo some porridge just days before.

"Yes? Can I help you?" asked Mia sweetly, grinning at Miriallia and Kira, who were standing in front of everyone else. Mia threw the soiled tissues into the bin by her side, before returning her innocent gaze to the teenagers in front of her.

"My, my, why the long faces and black faces? Did something terrible happen to the lot of you? You can tell me, I'll gladly listen." said Mia, smiling toothily at Miriallia, who seemed to be growing angrier by the second.

"Yes, you can very well help us! You can help us a bunch by telling Athrun the naked truth about us!" barked Kyo, stepping forward and standing firmly alongside Miriallia, who nodded sternly.

Instantly, the innocent expression on Mia's face was swiped off, replaced by a malicious sneer. However, when she spoke her voice did not change, probably so that Athrun would not get suspicious. Since Mia's back was facing Athrun, he had no idea what her features were playing.

"But I wasn't even lying. You people are just putting on a angelic front. The truth is that the bunch of you are willing to either sell yourselves," said Mia, stopping and turning to look at Miriallia and Kyo, who both curled their fists into tight balls. "Or behave like insolent and barbaric brutes."

Mia ended her speech with a deadly and rude stare at Yzak, indicating that she thought he was insolent and a barbaric brute, which was right about Yzak, in the past that is. The platinum blonde had been coaxed and encouraged by Kyo ever since her met her, and had since had his behaviour and temper improve by heaps.

Yzak's breathing became rather obvious again, flaring his nostrils like an infuriated bull. This kind of behaviour called for Kyo to turn around and calm him down using gentle and soothing words.

"Don't let her rattle you. You know she's _lying_, don't you? No matter what she says of you, you'll always be an angel in my eyes, _Yzak_." whispered Kyo softly, stroking his cheek gently, brushing aside some of his platinum blonde hair.

Just then Kira exploded, letting out his temper, which had never been as hot and red as now. The way he burst out was as if he had suddenly caught fire, a fire that was wild and burning with fury, fuelled by it's hatred for anything that stood in its path.

"YOU STUPID INSOLENT GIRL! YOU'RE RUDE, HEARTLESS AND YOU'RE ALSO A BIG FAT BLOODY LIAR!" bellowed Kira, nearly lunging at Mia if not for Miriallia and Dearka, who restrained the brunette who was struggling wildly.

Mia screamed a loud and frightened scream, triggering Athrun's temper this time round. Although she sounded almost terrified, her expression still held that malicious grin. Mia was so good at lying she could lie without batting an eyelid.

"Why did you have to lie Mia? Lie about us to Athrun! Worst of all lie about _Cagalli_ to Athrun! Thanks to you and your mouth, Cagalli can't do anything but grieve and indulge in self-mutilation the entire day long!" hollered Miriallia, tears of anger coming to her eyes. "You're so selfish, you only thought of yourself when you lied! You just shoot your mouth of without thinking!"

"ALL OF YOU JUST LEAVE HER ALONE!" shouted Athrun furiously, the blue-haired co-ordinator was now on his feet and standing protectively in front of Mia. Although his head was still bandaged, he must've recovered most of the way throughout the night with Mia's help, and he sure had a good amount of strength and energy to deliver such a loud and echoing shout.

Mia was now cowering behind Athrun, trembling and looking on the verge of tears. Although Kira and the others knew very well that she was feigning the innocence and the tears, just to win Athrun over.

"Athrun she's lying to you! If only you had your memory, you would remember all of us! All the fun things we shared! And all the precious moments you and Cagalli had!" said Kyo frantically, standing in front of Athrun, looking almost ready to plead with him.

"No! You're the one who's lying! you're the one's who landed me in this state! Call yourselves my friends! Friends of my former self maybe, but definitely not now! And you can tell that Cagalli, she's nothing more than a _snot of a girl _to me now!" snarled Athrun, turning around and comforting Mia who was now in tears.

"I don't believe this! Heaven, why are you doing this to Cagalli? Nevermind us, but why Cagalli?" asked Miriallia, falling to her knees and looking up out of the window and at the innocent blue sky, its fluffy white clouds like bunches of white candyfloss floating around aimlessly.

"Let's go our work here is done. We've done all we could. Even if we tried harder, if Athrun isn't willing to give us a chance so he can dig further and believe, then no matter what we said wouldn't matter." said Dearka knowingly, sighing before wrapping an arm aorund Miriallia's shoulders and steering her out of the ward.

They all filed out of the medical unit one by one, Kyo took one last look at Athrun, remembering the polite and charming young man he once was. Like when she first met him in Cagalli's room, and he had been hiding in Cagalli's bathroom.

Murrue and Andrew were still outside, and knew better than to question as they had heard the entire frenzy and conversation, and knew that it didn't go well at all.

They all field back into Cagalli's bedroom, slumping themselves into chairs and sighing.

"So? How'd it go?" asked Lacus curiously, ignoring the pissed and disappointed looks on their friend's faces. There was a long silence after Lacus's question, clearly no one wanted to answer it.

"I assume it went badly," muttered Lacus softly, sitting down beside Cagalli on the floor. The blonde girl was looking as stoned as ever, however, at least she was looking around at people now and saying a few words.

"How was Cagalli while we were gone? Was she extrememly frisky?" asked Kyo, looking at Lacus expectantly, who just grinned back and shook her head to indicate that Cagalli had been no worse than an angel.

"Cagalli stop! Leave the bandages alone!" exclaimed Miriallia, prying Cagalli's hand from her injured arm as the Orb Princess was now busy untying the bandages and looking ready to hurt herself even more.

"Why can't all of you just leave me alone?" asked Cagalli softly, looking up at Miriallia, Lacus and Kyo, who were the three people standing the closest to her at the moment.

"We _can't_ and _won't_ leave you alone, even for _a second_!" barked Kira harshly, looking firmly at his blonde twin sister who looked somewhat hurt and offended. Lacus shot Kira a fierce stare, telling him not to work Cagalli up and to stop being so stern with her.

"Kira's right, but it's not that we want to watch you like a hawk eyeing its prey. See, you've been behaving in a rather unstable way lately. Take earlier for example, you were mutilating your arm." said Lacus kindly, tucking a few strands of Cagalli's blonde hair behind her ears, so they wouldn't poke her honey-brown eyes.

"Yeah, Cagalli we all know you're feeling very down and hurt right now, but it's no reason for you to want to hurt yourself even more." said Kyo, crouching down in front of Cagalli, and looking sadly at the blonde Orb Princess, whose nostrils were flaring every now and then while her eyes were swimming in her tears.

"No offense Cagalli, but you want to hurt yourself so much that we're afraid if we leave alone for just 10 seconds, you might take the oppurtunity to commit suicide." said Dearka knowingly, looking at Cagalli before looking back down at his feet and shuffling them about.

Cagalli burst into a fit of full-blown tears the moment Dearka ended his statement, and she started hurting herself even more this time, by biting herself. Miriallia and Lacus frantically tried to stop Cagalli, but to no avail Cagalli just began running around the room away from everyone.

"Cagalli! D'you want to be thrown into the tub again!" questioned Kira loudly, folding his arms and looking at Cagalli sternly, who was standing in furthest corner of the room from everyone else.

At Kira's sentence, Cagalli took her forearm away from her mouth. The blonde girl trembled for a second before falling to her knees and crying bitterly. She tugged at her blonde hair, and bit her lower lip letting her tears of pure anguish fall and soak into the carpeted flooring of her bedroom.

"Cagalli, stop doing this to yourself. You're making all of us very worried for you," said Kyo pleadingly, looking sadly down at Kyo, looking on the verge of tears herself as she watched the once tomboyish Princess of Orb being reduced to nothing more than a lonely girl with no one to love.

"Tsk tsk, you're definitely not that tomboy I first laid my eyes on." hissed Yzak, looking at Cagalli and shaking his head, but was ticked off by Kyo, who glared at him fiercely, and whacked him hard on the arm, though it clearly had no effect on Yzak, who was known to have skin even thicker than an elephant's.

"Cagalli, tell us what we can do to make you feel better! We hate seeing you this way, it makes our hearts ache along with yours!" said Miriallia falling to her knees in front of Cagalli and lifting the blodne Orb Princess's head.

"What happened to all the fun things we had in the past? We used to share the joys and the pains, remember? If you feel sad then I'll feel sad as well." added Miriallia, shakign the blodne girl by the shoulders. "So brace up Cagalli, you're only 16 you've got a whole life ahead of you, make good use of it."

"I... don't want... to think... of the past. It makes... me think of... of... of ATHRUN!" wailed Cagalli pitifully, feeling the jets of hurt shoot through her chest and pierce her hearts like a thousand daggers and javelins.

There were countless holes in Cagalli's heart right now, made by the daggers and javelins, but even if those deadly weapons were wrenched out of her heart, the wounds and scars they made would never heal. Her heart was a wreck, shattered into a million pieces, not even the world's best man at jigsaw puzzles would be able to mend it.

"Cagalli, why don't you just _forget about Athrun_?" said Kira, his voice cracking up as he looked down at his sister, feeling the pain she felt as he watched her weep and torture herself endlessly.

Everyone turned their gaze to Kira, some of them not believing that Kira had just said that, and others wishing to kill him because they knew that phrase would work Cagalli up to full blast.

Cagalli sat on her feet, her legs bent inwards and her knees jutting out. The blodne girl sat there, traumatised as though petrified by her twin brother's most recent sentence.

Fear flooded Cagalli's mind. No, she couldn't forget Athrun, she couldn't even stop loving him. It wouldn't be fair to someone. That someone hadn't chosen to be caught up in the situation they were all tangled in now, like an insect caught in a spider's web, that someone had been hopelessly thrown into the tangled mess.

Cagalli knew she would never forget Athrun, she reached into her pocket before taking the rectangular shaped object about 10 centimetres long. She clutched it between her fingers, knowing she could hide the secret no more.

Out of the blue Cagalli let out a strangled cry, "How can I forget Athrun? I won't stop loving him and won't forget him either! _I can't stop loving him_! BECAUSE I'M PREGNANT!"

Cagalli threw the object she was holding at Kira who caught it and realised it was a pregnancy test kit. The kit showed a positive and Kira couldn't help but looked half shocked and half sorry for his sister.

No one knew how to talk to Cagalli, no one knew what to say to her. All they could do was watch.

_A/N There's another chappie for you guys! I know most of you hate Mia, she's such a toot. Can't say that word, haha! Anyway, sorry for typo errors and pls review! Oh yes, I wish you all a Merry Chirstmas!_

_**In the next chapter: With a lot of effort, Miriallia and Kyo manage to persuade Cagalli to eat something. Cagalli calms down a great deal after this. Kira feels shocked and is a loss of what to do, he heads down in the garden and drowns his uncertainty and sorrow with his tears. Lacus spots him from the balcony and comes down to soothe him. Lord Uzumi pays Cagalli a visit in her room after learning about what happened. Cagalli decides to confront Athrun alone, now that he has been discharged. However, will her confrontation with him go smoothly or will things turn ugly? **_


	14. Weal & Woe

Chapter 14 Weal & Woe

_A/N Ok, in my last chapter, I think I made an error in my last line, it was supposed to be "look shocked", but I wrote it out as "looked shocked", sorry. I only realised that after I uploaded my chapter, haha! Anyway, happy reading!_

"Cagalli, you need to eat something. You haven't eaten for a day already. Stop being so obstinate will you? You're worrying all of us!" said Miriallia frantically, kneeling down in front of the blonde Orb Princess and shaking her gently by the shoulders. However, to no avail the blodne girl just furrowed her eyebrows and pouted.

"Cagalli, what if you get malnourished? What will Lord Uzumi say? He'll be worried sick for you. If you won't eat for yourself, then at least eat for _your baby_." said Lacus knowingly, placing her hand on Cagalli's abdomen where a slight baby bump had formed.

The pink-haired girl's words struck the blonde girl. Yes, Lacus had a very good point. The reason she wasn't eating was because she wanted to torture herself, hoping that by doing so, the pain she felt in her heart would be vanquished. However, the situation had since changed. Cagalli was carrying an unborn baby now, she couldn't be thinking of ways to torture herself, it wouldn't be fair to her baby.

The blonde princess wasn't crying as much as before now, in fact she had stopped crying completely. However, she was still in her dazed and stoned state, refusing to do so much as nod her head in reply when asked a question.

"What should I eat? I may be a girl, but brushing up on maternity skills is not my cup of tea." murmured Cagalli softly, looking from Lacus to Cagalli, who looked overjoyed and relieved that the blonde girl was finally responding fully and thinking straight.

"That's my Cagalli! Now let's see, what _do_ _you_ feel like eating? Usually expectant mothers have cravings that make them go off the food they usually like or eat." said Miriallia, grinning at Cagalli, and raising an eyebrow questioningly.

"I'm not sure, maybe a bowl of of chicken porridge with extra scallops and shrimps?" replied Cagalli, biting her lower lip and looking up at Miriallia and Lacus as both young women smiled toothily down at their blonde friend.

"Brilliant," said Lacus brightly, turning around just as she heard the bedroom door click open, revealing the rejuvenated face of Kyo at the door way, along with the copper-tone skinned blonde, Dearka Elthman.

"Guess what? Cagalli's finally agreed on eating chicken porridge? Well at least that's what she requested for when I asked what her preference was." said Miriallia, smiling widely at the duo who had just entered the bedroom. The auburn-haired girl had been talking so fast like a bullet train, that none of the others had catched a word of what she said, but no one could've been happier than Dearka, who was just delighted in seeing his auburn-haired companion smile for once in hours.

Lacus laughed merrily, hand over her mouth. "Miriallia said that Cagalli has finally decided on eating chicken porridge." The pink-haired girl, looked happily down at Cagalli, who was setaed comfortably on the floor, peeling some of the dried skin off her fingers.

"That's weird, you're not with Yzak for once, Kyo." said Miriallia teasingly, looking at Kyo, who was not in the company of Yzak Jule. She had come down from her room after washing up, and had met Dearka on the way to Cagalli's bedroom.

"Well, he's still sleeping like a log. When I went into his room earlier, he was half off his bed. His legs apparently had fallen off his head, and his upper body hoisted over the side." said Kyo, bursting into a fit of giggles. "I had to punch him before I actually got his attention."

"But he still treausres his sleep more than you," said Dearka jokingly, who received a playful nudge in the ribs from the attractive redhead. The blonde young man, stepped forward and wrapped his arms around Miriallia tightly, before planting a kiss on her cheek.

"I never knew you were a couple. As far as I know, the only people who are coupled here are Kyo and Yzak." said Cagalli, who was staring up at a blushing Miriallia and a grinning Dearka.

"Then it's time we enlighten you Cagalli. Your brother Kira has a girlfriend too, you know. He's fallen head over heels in love with Lacus." laughed Dearka, turning to face Lacus who blushed deeply. "When Athrun..." however, Dearka paused hoping that the mere mention of the blue-haired co-oridnator's name wouldn't work the blonde girl up.

"Carry on, don't worry I've calmed down already. The mention of that asshole's name doesn't aggravate me anymore." hissed Cagalli, sounding rather firm about her words, though there still was an obvious tint of hurt in her voice.

"Oh well then, ok. When Athrun and I were dragging Yzak out of the suite, we spotted Kira and Lacus kissing by the window pane." said Dearka, bursting out laughing when he finished is statement, and for ocne Cagalli smiled to herself.

"Kira and Lacus were spotted kissing by Dearka and Athrun. Kira's first kiss, finally. He was so immature then, Lacus must've really influenced him." Cagalli thought to herself, before she got up and settled herself into a nearby chair as her legs were tired from sititng on the floor.

"Cagalli, I'm going to get your porridge. Dearka, mind accompanying me?" asked Miriallia, holding out her open hand to the copper-tone skinned young man who accepted without any questions.

"I'll be waiting, I'm so hungry I could eat a cow. But then I would be bloated and become obese." said Cagalli, grinning widely at her auburn-haired friend, who looked delighted at the blonde's return of humour.

"We'll stay behind and accomapny Cagalli then." said Kyo, seeing Dearka and Miriallia out of the bedroom doorway before shutting the door gently and joining and Lacus and Cagalli.

"Are you thirsty? You haven't had anything to drink either," said Lacus, getting up from her chair and hurrying over to the bedside table and tipping the water jug over toward the glass cup so that the crystal clear liquid called water, flowed gracefully into the glass.

"I thought you'd ask sooner or later, but then again, please stop this all. I don't really like being waited on. I'm young and fully functional, I'm capable of doing basic things myself, thanks." said Cagalli knowingly, looking at Lacus and thanking her for the glass of water.

"Sorry, we're just so overjoyed that you're finally thinking straight again. Yesterday you were a totally different person. Crying and screaming your lungs off, it was rather frightening if you ask me." said Lacus, looking unappreciatively at Cagalli, before her lips broke into a smile.

"Accept my sincere apologies then. I guess what happened was a big blow to me. I had loved Athrun so deeply, and his reaction when I saw him in the medical unit, it just hit me like a thousand knives." said Cagalli, sipping from her glass of water, before shaking her head slowly from side to side.

"Cagalli, if it makes the pain worse, then don't talk about it. We understand you perfectly," said Kyo softly, looking conerned for Cagalli, as she saw the tears building up in the Orb Princess's honey-brown eyes once more.

Cagalli sniffled lightly before rubbing her eyes, "No, I must not cry. I must NEVER cry anymore, I must be strong, for my baby." she said, feeling her stomach gently.

"You're wrong Cagalli. Yes, you shouldn't cry over Athrun, but it's not true that you must NEVER cry. You ought to be a person with a heart of stone if were never to cry again." said Lacus wisely, looking at Cagalli knowingly. "Crying shows that you're human, and that you have emotions and a heart."

"Lacus is right. What happened to Athrun was beyond both yours and our control, it's all Mia's fault. She lied to Athrun about us, just so she could make him fall for her." snarled Kyo annoyed, curling her fists into tight balls and gritting her teeth.

"Believe me, Mia's probably more than half way there. However, there's got to be someway we can show the truth to Athrun the truth and make him believe us. I can't stop loving him either, my baby dserves to have a father." said Cagalli, feeling her stomach and sighing deeply, before looking up at her two friends.

"When there's a will there's a way," said Kyo determinedly, patting Cagalli gently on the back and smiling toothily at her blonde friend, who just smiled back warmly.

"I hope you don't mind, but what made you change your mind about Athrun, and calm down so abruptly?" asked Lacus softly, hoping the blonde girl wouldn't feel uncomfortable answering the question.

"Well, I have been doing a lot of thinking, and I mean my crying wouldn't change what has happened, right? Besides, even though it is Mia's fault that Athrun has reacted this way, he believes her totally and it won't be a piece of cake making him believe us. Besides, I've been crying my eyes out until they hurt, and I'm only worrying the lot of you." explained Cagalli, finishing off her glass of water in a few gulps and licking her lips.

"I see, that wasn't very hard to understand. Usually when one talks about his emotions, they make it so complicated nobody can understand him except himself." said Lacus smiling gently. The pink-haired girl looked to her left out into the balcony of Cagalli's bedroom, and into the grassy meadow below.

A lone figure sat hugging his legs on the soft green grass among the bushes and shrubbery. He was wearing an all black outfit with red outlines. His short brunette hair swayed with the passing zephyr, as he looked out past the shoreline into the horizon.

"Kira," Lacus muttered under her breath, as she watched the lone figure sit alone on the grassy meadow, flowers and bushes surrounding him.

"Hey umm, I'm going into the meadows for a while. I've spotted Kira, he's sitting there alone, and it's not usually like him to act this way." said Lacus, speaking of her brunette companion as if she knew him for years.

"Go ahead, I know what it feels like being alone," sighed Cagalli looking down at her stomach and feeling it gently once more. "I don't want Kira to feel lonely, neither do I want anyone to feel blue."

"I'm sorry about all that's happened, Cagalli. If it was within my power I would've prevented it all." said Lacus, walking over to the expectant blonde mother and placing a warm and reassuring hand on her shoulder. "See you later,"

Lacus smiled warmly at Cagalli before walking briskly though still in a very ladylike way out of the opulent bedroom, before swinging the massive oak door shut behind her. It simply wasn't like Kira to be sitting alone in the meadow and looking at the scenery. As far as Lacus knew, Kira was one who loved company and fun.

Lacus's shoes made soft clicking sounds as she swirled down the spiral staircase gracefully, upholding both grace and respect. The pink-headed girl made her way down into the meadow, her feet making no noise as she padded across the grass toward the brunette young man.

"Kira, are you alright?" asked Lacus softly, moving up beside Kira and settling herself on the grass beside him, and watching a ladybug make its way up her arm, before she gently picked it up and placed in on a leaf in a nearby rose bush.

Kira turned to is side away from Lacus before quickly wiping his face with the back of his hand and sniffling as softly as he could as not to give his status away, but being a co-ordinator, Lacus's enhanced hearing picked everything up.

"What's wrong? You were crying weren't you? Care to share what's ailing you?" asked Lacus, taking Kira by the shoulders ang gently urging him to face her, however, the brunette young man simply refused and stood his ground.

"I wasn't crying, I just have a slight runny nose." said Kira, sniffling again and still refusing to face his pink-haired lover, who looked down for a moment and began thinking hard.

"Really? Then why won't you face me and look at me straight in the eye?" asked Lacus, looking at Kira's back, and waiting for him to say something or turn his back around. "Do you think I wouldn't recognise the cries, excuses and the actions a young man in the midst of tears would make?"

Kira froze at the statement. It wasn't any point rebelling her any longer, she knew very well that he had been crying. What's the harm just turning around to face her anyway, she didn't seem to complain that he was crying.

Slowly, Kira turned to face Lacus, though his head still remained bent, looking at the grass in-between his crossed legs. The violet eyes young man felt the soft and slender finger of his sweet lover lift his chin.

Violet eyes met with warm light blue ones as the duo just remained silent for the meantime, just enjoying the feeling of being alone together.

"No will you tell me what's ailing you? A young man wouldn't be crying over a small matter." said Lacus loving, stroking Kira's cheek gently, and waiting for an answer from the brunette young man.

"Ever since we were toddlers, or maybe a little older than that, Cagalli and I were never on good terms with each other. Not in such serious way that we were arch enemies, but we fought a lot and Cagalli would throw massive tantrums. I annoyed her from the very start, and I still do so, that I have to admit." said Kira so softly it was almost close to a whisper.

"That's what's bothering? the fact that you keep annoying Cagalli?" asked Lacus, feeling a little puzzled, why would someone be crying over the fact that he always annoyed his twin sister? "It's got to be something more than that, right?" Lacus asked.

Kira nodded and sniffled again, more tears rolling down his cheeks, as hie entire frame started trembling. "I've _never_ failed to annoy Cagalli, and yet now when she's most in need of the love and care that siblings would offer, I can't do anything to help her." Kira ended his statement, bursting into a fit of noisy tears, and for once Lacus didn't see him as the matured Kira she knew, he looked more like a lost child, not knowing what to do.

So that was what was bothering Kira. The fact that he never failed to annoy Cagalli, and at the same time he couldn't do anything to help her when she needed him most. Lacus watched the brunette young man cry bitterly, and felt the urge to just pull him over to her and cradle him in her arms, which was exactly what she did seconds later.

"Hush now, I know you're trying very hard to find a means to help Cagalli, but it's not that you can't do anything to help her. There's _NO WAY _we can help her right now. With the current situation, we'll have to see how things go, and ebfore we can help cagalli, she has to _LET US _help her first." explained Lacus, cradling a blubbering Kira in her arms.

"I... just feel... so useless..." sobbed Kira, letting more of his tears slip out from under his close eyelids stream down his cheeks and to the back of his head.

"Hush Kira, you're _not_ useless. I know that, your friends know that, _Cagalli_ knows that. As much as the both of you bicker and fight each day, the two of you still share a close bond, a bond called _love_." explained Lacus, wiping away Kira's tears with her hands, and stroking his cheek and pushing some of his hair away from his face.

Kira snuggled closer to Lacus, and although he was a tad too big to be cradled like a baby, Lacus still enjoyed being able wrap her arms around him and cuddle him tight.

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"Oh, you're back, good. Good day to both of you, Miss Lacus, Kira." said Lord Uzumi, greeting the brunette and the pink-headed girl when they entered the Orb Princess's bedroom.

"Good day to you to, Lord Uzumi." greeted Kira and Lacus, bowing respectfully before joinging Cagalli, Kyo, along with Miriallia and Dearka, who had apparently returned with Cagalli's porridge just moments ago. Also, it wasn't surprising to see Yzak standing beside Kyo, his arm snaked around her waist.

"I'm aware of everything that has happened from what I heard from our other two guests, Miss Ramius and Mr. Wattfeld, however you won't be seeing them today as they're on a tour I orgnaised for them here." said Lord Uzumi knowingly, settling into a nearby chair.

"So I guess you know what kind of person Mia Campbell is, right?" hissed Yzak, looking imensely angry, although he had learnt to manage his temper quite well, thanks to Kyo who seemed to be able to reduce Yzak to jelly whenever she was around.

"Yes, I must say she is incredibly cunning for a young woman and to commit such a horrendous act involving lying and the hurting of one's feelings." said Lord Uzumi, looking at Cagalli, who just looked down at her folded hands on her lap.

"Why don't you just get rid of her? You have the power to do that Lord Uzumi," said Dearka knowingly, folding his arms across his chest and waiting for an answer from the Lion of Orb.

"That's a thoughtful though inappropriate idea, Dearka, because if Mia is sent away, she'll take Athrun with her, and right now we're tyring to think of a way to show Athrun the truth and reunite him with Cagalli." said Miriallia smartly, looking bluntly at her blonde boyfriend who sighed in defeat.

"We'll just force her to go back to PLANTs alone then. There's no rule that says she HAS to bring Athrun along." said Kyo looking deeping in thought. "But then again, even if we force her to leave Athrun here, d'you think Athrun will want to stay here? I pretty much think he'll tag along with Mia anyway."

"So I guess the best option is to keep Miss Campbell and Mr. Zala here, while the bunch of you think up a plan." said Lord Uzumi, thinking hard himself.

"Don't call Mia 'Miss" Lord Uzumi, she doesn't deserve such high status, I mean after what bimbotic things she's done." said Yzak hotly, curling his fists into tight balls and clenching his jaw.

"It's wrong to think that way, Mr. Jule. No matter what disdainful or horrendous acts one has commited, it is only right that you show the person some due respect." said Lord Uzumi wisely, correcting Yzak on his mentality.

Yzak just rolled his eyes and folded his arms across his brawny chest, not giving a care about the Lion of Orb's wise words of justice and equality.

"Father... maybe there's something you should know, about me that is." said Cagalli softly, not daring to look her adoptive father straight in the eye. The blonde girl was going to confess to her father about her pregnancy.

"Yes, Cagalli? You know you can tell me anything." said Lord Uzumi, looking expectantly at his blonde aoptive daughter, who was looking rather uncertain and hesitant about what she was going to say.

"Well, you're actually the seocnd last person to know this, but I'm... _I'm pregnant_." murmured Cagalli softly, her words getting softer and softer with each word, and by the time she completed her sentence, her words were almost inaudible. Thankfully, Lord Uzumi had his ear just centimetres from Cagalli's lips.

"I'm speechless Cagalli," said Lord Uzumi, looking at the blonde Orb Princess, his expression showing neither fury nor disappointment. In fact, Cagalli wasn't sure what to think about her adoptive father.

"No doubt I'm happy that you're carrying an heir to our throne after yourself, but at 16? If I'm not wrong, the baby was fathered by Mr. Athrun Zala, right?" asked the Lion of Orb, eyeing his adoptive blonde daughter closely, and making her inch away cautiously.

"Bulls-eye," replied Cagalli softly, looking rather reproachful. Yes, she was glad that her father was not angry and disciplining her, but he didn't look too happy either. He had a point though, she was only 16, yes. A 16 year old girl, and already on her way to motherhood.

"Have you told the baby's father?" asked Lord Uzumi, not using Athrun's name as from the start he had found Athrun's name rather queer and hard to pronounce. (_A/N: Well you see, Lord Uzumi is getting old and his tongue's not as flexible, haha. Besides, until I discovered Gundam Seed/Destiny, I never heard of a name called 'Athrun'. But I think the name is unique, hehe.)_

"Not yet. I plan to do so later though, Athrun has a right to know." said Cagalli sighing, and feeling her stomach, although since she was still early in her pregnancy, the baby didn't move around much.

"What! You're actually going to _tell_ him, how?" asked Dearka appalled. Clearly, the copper-tone skinned blonde young man never really used much of his brains, there was only one way to tell Athrun wasn't there? Obviously to confront Athrun and tell the blue-haired guy straight in the face. However, it did not mean that Dearka Elthman was stupid or dumb, it just meant that he left half his brain on, and the other half, unused like a white elephant.

"Of course she'll tell him. Even if she didn't want to, I would've urged her to. Even though circumstances have changed, the fact remains that Athrun _is_ the baby's _father_. Like Cagalli mentioned, he has the right to know." said Kira knowingly, looking encouragingly at Cagalli, who grinned gently.

"In that case, I think my work here is done. Take care of yourself Cagalli, and don't do anything rash or foolish, your baby needs you. I'll take my leave, bye." said Lord Uzumi, getting up and bowing back to the bunch of teenagers who had bowed to him first.

Cagalli and the others watched as Lord Uzumi slipped out of the bedroom door, and disappearing out of sight and his footsteps soon became out of earshot.

"Oh yes, Athrun's been discharged. Just this morning I think, I saw him earlier on." said Kira, looking sternly down at his expectant blonde sister, who had poured herself another glass of water and was now drinking it.

"Cagalli, if you're going to confront him, you're not going to do it alone, are you?" asked Miriallia, sounding rather concerned and making her disapproval clear enough for Cagalli to take notice of.

"Of course I'm going alone, you don't expect me to confront Athrun to tell him something this important with a bunch of you breathing down my neck." said Cagalli firmly, looking sternly at Miriallia and especially Kira, as she didn't want him tagging along or sending Kyo or Dearka to watch after her.

"Cagalli's right. We can't be following her everywhere, it's time she had some time alone to do what she wants. Since you're going to confront Athrun, make it snappy, don't beat around the bush and just get straight to the point. You know how hot-tempered he becomes when he sees you nowadays." said Kyo, smiling gently down at her blonde friend.

"But, if you take too long we'll send someone down to look for you." said Kira sternly, shooting his sister a penetrating glare, which told Cagalli not to argue back.

"Deal! I'm going now," said Cagalli, picking up a red Orb overcoat and putting it on before striding toward the bedroom door.

"Cagalli wait! Be careful if he tries to hit you, I advise you to run if he turns violent. Don't forget, you're pregnant if you fall there's a possibility of a miscarriage." warned Lacus knowingly, sending the blonde Orb Princess on her way.

Cagalli took Lacus's advice seriously. She definitely did not want to lose the child within her, even though she'd never met the baby, she still shared a bond with it.

Just as Cagalli turned a corner, she bumped straight into Athrun and Mia Campbell. The blonde was not expecting this, and was at a loss for words. It was only then that she remembered Athrun's room was just around the left corner from hers.

"Oh, look who it is. Miss _Smutty_," hissed Mia annoyingly, cackling with laughter as she clung on to Athrun's left forearm. The bandage on Athrun's head still remained in place, as the wound was still healing.

Cagalli glared at Mia, before finding the courage to speak up. "Mia, go on ahead. I need to speak with Athrun... _alone_."

"Oh really, what matter would be so important that you would need to chat with Athrun alone away from me?" questioned Mia, walking in circles around the blonde Orb Princess, who couldn't help but feel the hairs on the back of her neck stand.

"It's just personal, and it involves only Athrun and I, so if you were a decent person you'd show some respect and leave the two of us alone for a moment." said Cagalli, trying very hard to maintain her temper.

"I wouldn't want to talk to you alone, besides anything that involves me, involves Mia. So you can just say what you want in front of her," hissed Athrun, glaring disgustedly at Cagalli, who could already feel the pain in her chest getting worse.

Never had Athrun used that tone on her before when they were once a couple, and NEVER had her glared at her so full of fury and hate.

Cagalli took in a deep breath, however, when she tried to speak nothing came out of it. Panic was rising in Cagalli's lower half, and she was now unable to move as her feet remained rooted to the ground.

"Speed up will you? We don't have the entire day, you know? Besides, I think you're just trying to chat Athrun up, hoping he'll get back together with you, but I suggest you forget him and move on." said Mia, sneering maliciously at Cagalli.

"I can't do that." muttered Cagalli, looking away from Mia and Athrun. Lacus had forewarned her not to beat around the bush and to hurry up, but the words were just not willing to come out of her mouth.

"I'm losing my patience, _Cagalli_. Just say what you have to say and leave the both of us alone," said Athrun heatedly, his voice becoming hoarse and turning into a low and angry drone.

No matter how hard Cagalli tried, the words just couldn't come out. Her eyes were swimming with tears, and she was beginnign to panic. the mroe she panicked the worse everything became, the clock was ticking in Athrun, and he was losing his patience fast.

Out of the blue, Athrun jumped into action and grabbed Cagalli by the collar, lifting her clean off her feet and pinning her against the corridor wall. The blonde Orb Princess screamed with all her might, the panic clear in her voice.

"WHAT D'YOU WANT WITH ME? I KNOW ALL ABOUT YOU, CAGALLI YULA ATHHA! YOU'RE JUST A BIMBO WHO SLEEPS AROUND! SO JUST WHAT D'YOU WANT TO TELL ME?" hollered Athrun, his bretahing fast and furious as he lgared at Cagalli, whose tears were spilling endlessly down her face.

Athrun had changed. He had changed so drastically Cagalli didn't know any part of him anymore. He was no longer the charismatic and gentle young man she once loved and cherished with all her heart, he had turned cold and ill-tempered.

Cagalli stared down into his emerald eyes, which held a tint of hate and fury in them. They used to hold a warm and gentle glow, enhancing his handsome features, which were already alluring enough.

However, that good side of Athrun had been hopelessly destroyed. Destroyed like paper would burn when thrown into a fiery furnace, and be reduced to nothing more than a memory of mere ashes.

"PUT HER DOWN!" yelled Kira, turning around the corner and coming to an abrupt halt so as not to bump into Mia Campbell, who seemed to be enjoying whatever that was going on. "I SAID PUT HER DOWN, ATHRUN!"

Athrun released Cagalli, letting her fall to her knees hard on the marble floor. Cagalli scrambled helplessly on all fours to her twin brother who helped her to her feet.

Tears of anguish and heartbreak overwhelmed Cagalli as she watched Athrun from behind Kira's back. the others had come to the scene as well and were all busy trying to comfort Cagalli.

"You're a heartless jackass, Athrun Zala. What's happened to you? You seem to be blinded by everything that's happened," said Lacus fiercely, swearing for the first time in her entire life.

"_I hate her, I hate all of you_." snarled Athrun, fists clenched tightly, reminding Kyo very much of what Yzak was like before she had managed to give him some anger-management classes.

"You can hate me all you like! But I won't give up on you! Simply because the baby I'm carrying deserves a father! It's not fair if a child suffers because of his parents' wrong doings!" cried Cagalli bitterly, almost begging Athrun to come to light and open his eyes.

Athrun stormed off, pushing roughly past Cagalli who would've fallen down if Kira had't supported her. Mia trailed along after Athrun, looking annoyed but her expression held a tint of pity in it.

Cagalli just stood trembling behind Kira, wondering if there was any moment in her life when things had just gone perfectly without spoiling.

_A/N Ooh, Athrun's changed so much! Argh! I'm so evil, I make Athrun into a total asshole and I make Cagalli suffer. Well sorry, but I love angst, hehe. Sorry for typo errors and pls review!_

_**In the next chapter: Despite her ordeal with Athrun the day before, Cagalli still remains calm and cheerful, and agrees to follow Kyo and Miriallia out into town to buy some baby clothes. Kira still feels guilty about not being to do much about helping Cagalli and remains most of the time isolated in his bedroom. Lacus decides to confront Mia and question her on why she lied and did everythign she did. Dearka teases Yzak about Kyo and is surprised to find that Yzak actually has developed the cheek and humour to tease him back. What will their teasing develop into? **_


	15. Baby Talk

Chapter 15 Baby Talk

_A/N: Heya, if I suddenly do not update for a long time within the next two weeks, do not be alarmed, because I am migrating to New Zealand and so I will need to get a computer there and set up internet access before I can update again. But I'm trying to finish this fanfic before January 2006, but it sure looks as if I won't be able to make it! Happy reading!_

"Oh, you're awake! Finally, it's already half past nine!" said Miriallia, walking toward Cagalli's bedside and propping a sleepy Cagalli up onto her pillow. The Orb Princess looked somewhat dishevelled, her hair was sticking out like a duck's tail and her shirt was drooping over one side of her shoulder.

"I wanna sleep some more..." said Cagalli sleepily, removing her pillow from behind her and slamming herself back onto her bed, before throwing the pillow over the side of her head.

The auburn-haired girl looked disapprovingly at her blonde friend, who seemed reluctant to get up and out of bed. Of course, it was natural for an expectant mother to be tired, but not to the point where she would refuse to do anything but sleep.

Kyo had stayed in Cagalli's room along with Miriallia throughout the night as well, and was currently washing up in Cagalli's bathroom. Miriallia had also advised Lacus to stay in case anything happened, as among the lot of them, Lacus was the medical expert.

However, Lacus had told Miriallia that Kira wasn't feeling very well lately, and he was feeling rather helpless and useless himself. Therefore, the pink-haired girl had decided to spend the night with Kira to comfort him.

Kyo exitted Cagalli's bathroom, sporting a three-quarter length pair of black track pants, which hugged her well-toned slender legs perfectly. Along with it was a white tank top and with words on it that said, 'Piping Hot'.

"Kyo! Cagalli won't get her bum out of bed!" squealed Miriallia, obviously getting quite pissed with the blonde Orb Princess. The attractive redheaded girl just looked over at her auburn-haired girlfriend and smiled warmly, before shifting her gaze to Cagalli.

"She must be exhausted then. Leave her alone, she needs rest." said Kyo knowingly, stuffing her toothbrush and toiletries into the knapsack she had packed along with her.

"Yes, she's tired, but pregnant ladies need exercise too!" said Miriallia, shaking Cagalli gently again in an attempt to arouse the blonde girl from her slumber, but to no avail, the blonde Orb Princess just ignored it all.

"If I wake up, what's there for me to do?" mumbled Cagalli, her head still covered by the pillow, and her voice so muffled in was barely understandable.

"What's there for you to do? Well I'll give you a long list of what there is to do!" said Miriallia, sounding more like an over-concerned mother for her lazy daughter. "We could go for a walk by the beach, and pick shells or throw rocks out into the sea. We could go and bully Kira or we could... WE COULD GO SHOPPING FOR BABY STUFF!"

"What! You want to go shopping out in town for _baby stuff_?" asked Kyo, not believing what she had just hear from the auburn-haired girl. Being a tomboy like Cagalli, only not as vulgar, Kyo had never liked the idea of shopping, even if she was shopping for things for herself.

"Yeah, why not? It sounds fun, I mean haven't you ever seen those cute baby jumpers, or those tiny booties that you slip onto those tiny feet of theirs?" asked Miriallia, feeling her insides already turning to mush thinking of babies.

"Goodness, I'd choose bullying Kira over going shopping for _baby stuff_ if you ask me. Besides, Cagalli's the one having the baby, not you. Why don't you ask Cagalli for her opinion." said Kyo knowingly, sighing and shaking her head at Miriallia, whom in Kyo's opinion, who over-excited.

"Actually, it's not a bad idea." said Cagalli, removing the pillow from over her head, and looking eagerly up at Miriallia, who looked as if she could jump for joy. As for Kyo, she was looking shocked at the tomboyish Princess of Orb, or at least the once tomboyish Princess of Orb.

"Ah ha! See! She doesn't mind going shopping for cute baby stuff! It's settled then, we'll set off in about half an hour to town, have a brunch there and then go shopping the entire afternoon!" exclaiemd Miriallia excitedly, dancing around the room.

"Miriallia are you having a fever? Yes, we'll go shopping, but certainly NOT for the _whole afternoon_." said Cagalli, sitting upright in bed and stretching before getting up and heading off into the toilet.

"Oh my gosh? What has being pregnant done to Cagalli? Hormones, cravings and all? Worst of all, _shopping_?" Kyo questioend herself, knocking herself lightly on the forehead.

"You know what, since the two of you are heading off to town to do some shopping? My whole afternoon is free, yipee! I can spend some time with Yzak now, haha!" said Kyo uneasily, feeling a a bead of sweat trickle down the side of her face, and trying to escape through the bedroom door, but too late, Miriallia's hand grabbed hold of Kyo's tank top.

"Oh no you don't! You're coming with us, and we need you for security reasons anyway. You're the only one among the three of us who's equiped with martial arts." said Miriallia sternly, dragging Kyo back into Cagalli's well-furnished bedroom.

Kyo slumped into Cagalli's swivel chair by her desk, wondering what the young Jule would say now, she had turned down his offer to take a walk by the beach the day before so she could accompany Cagalli, but now she was once again going to spend most of her day with Cagalli and Miriallia.

The attractive redhead wasn't surprised if the young Jule was feeling rather neglected, and he always had a bad temper whenever he wasn't able to see Kyo for more than a day.

It sometimes puzzled Kyo more than ever whenever she thought of why she ever fell in love with Yzak Jule. He wasn't the very gentle type and would rather be left alone than do anything else.

However, when Yzak was with Kyo though, everything seemed to change. His rough and cocky personality seemed to have vanished, and even though when he played with Kyo, he was still not as gentle as a girl would expect her boyfriend to be, it suited Kyo well, as she wasn't the soft type either.

Kyo thought back of the time when she and Yzak had secretly gone down to the beach in the middle of the night. She had spent almost the entire night there running up and down the length of the beach, Yzak chasing after her, torturing her mercilessly in a playful way with his tickles, bites and licks whenever he managed to catch her. And certainly, it rewarded the young Jule greatly as it wasn't very often that he managed to catch his attractive female companion.

Though Kyo was a girl, she ran at a high speed, even managing to overtake Yzak a couple of times whenever they raced. So as you can see, Yzak and Kyo's courtship wasn't really much of a very romantic one, more of a courtship that was full of expressing their love for each other through laughter and fun.

"Ok, let's not wait half an hour before going off! Let's go now!" said Cagalli, grabbing a black slingbag and dancing her way to the doorway, picking Kyo up from the swivel chair she was slumped in on her way.

Cagalli was sporting a pair of bell-bottomed jeans with tears at her knees and a grey spaghetti-strapped top. The blonde girl's top suited the blonde girl well as it exposed some of her cleavage and showed her masculine arms.

Miriallia excitedly pulled open Cagalli's oak bedroom door, to find Lacus and Kira standing by the doorway, hands outstretched apparently in the midst of reaching for the doorknob when the door was suddenly swung open.

"Where're the three of you off to?" asked Kira sternly, looking at the three girls who were dressed for an outing, and eyeing each of them closely especially Cagalli, making sure they weren't scantily dressed.

"Umm we're off to town to buy some baby necessities and maternity wear for Cagalli." replied Miriallia excitedly, putting an arm around Kyo, so as to make sure that the attractive redhead wouldn't try to sneak off while they were chatting with Kira and Lacus.

Kira looked questioningly at Cagalli, wondering if his blonde twin sister had actually consented to the shopping trip, or if she had been forced to tag along since they were buying maternity wear for her.

The brunette young man felt a little surprised that the incident that had happened the day before with Athrun hadn't affected Cagalli much at all. He had half expected his sister do be crying her eyes out the entire night, but judging by the way things seemed to be going, he guessed not.

"Kira, could you _please_ follow them instead? I don't want to go, and their reason for dragging me along is because I can protect them!" squealed Kyo, ducking out from under Miriallia's arm and moving away. "Besides, Cagalli is your sister, I'm sure you'd be more relaxed if you go, so you can keep watch on her."

To Kyo's surprise, Kira shook is head a couple of times. "Nah, you go. I trust you'll look after Cagalli for me. Shopping has never been my cup of tea anyway. Besides, I've got my own personal problems to solve." he finished, looking at Lacus who smiled at him gently.

"But I haven't had a chance to spend time with Yzak for the past _two days_! I miss him already, and I don't want him to feel neglected!" protested Kyo as she was dragged off by Miriallia with the help of Cagalli.

Kyo's protests were drowned when the elevator doors closed shut with the trio of girls securely inside it.

The sweet baby pink-haired girl looked gently up at her brunette boyfriend, who was looking somewhat tired and downhearted. Lacus's expressions changed from cheery to apprehensive when she saw the saddened look playing on Kira's boyish features.

"Shall we go for a walk or something, to make you feel better?" asked Lacus concerned, reaching up and stroking Kira's cheek gently, urging him to answer her.

The brunette moved away from Lacus, making her withdraw from him. Why was he acting like this? He'd usually consent to whatever she suggested, but why was he holding back today?

"Kira, you know what happened wasn't your fault. Nobody could've prevented it, not even you. Whether or not Athrun will come to light all depends on himself, he has to let us explain to him before he believes." said Lacus knowingly, stepping closer to Kira again and taking his face in her hands.

"I HATE seeing Cagalli this way, I don't want her to suffer, neither do I want her baby to suffer. Athrun is being fooled by Mia, and if we get rid of Mia it'll only worsen matters." said Kira, tears welling up in his violet eyes.

"Kira, you don't want to see Cagalli suffer." said Lacus softly, looking up at him, hoping he'd stop acting this way. "But _I don't want to see you suffer either._"

Kira cried silently, tears falling from his eyes and falling to the marble floor of the corridor. Certainly, he felt really useless. He wasnted to make Cagalli happy, and there was only one way and one person who could make that happen, _Athrun Zala_.

Kira's sobs were drowned by Lacus's moist lips pressing gently and passionately onto his. The brunette felt secure and reassured with Lacus, and Cagalli probably felt the same way when she had Athrun by her side.

Kira couldn't and didn't want to imagine the pain Cagalli felt when Athrun rejected her ever so violently and harshly that day in the medical unit. He didn't know what he'd do if anything untoward happened to Lacus, or if she rejected him.

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"Ooooh! Look at that, it's so cute! This teething ring looks absolutely adorable!" squealed Miriallia, picking a teething ring off the shop shelf and examining it. It was made of hard rubber and was molded into the shape of a dolphin.

"Mirre, are you going to find the teething ring cuter, or Cagalli's baby cuter? Besides, a baby has to be about 5 or 6 months before their teeth actually emerge. Right now, the baby isn't even born yet, the teething rings can be bought later on." said Kyo bluntly, dragging Mirialia away from the accessories section and following Cagalli to the shelf where the milk bottles and bottle teats were being sold.

"Aren't you going to breastfeed your baby?" asked Miriallia, watching Cagalli choose from a series of different rubber teats and uniquely shaped feeding bottles.

"Yeah, but what if I'm busy? I can't possibly be breastfeeding my baby in the middle of a meeting right? I'll probably store some milk in bottles." said Cagalli smartly, holding up a few bottles and waving them in front of Miriallia's face.

"Cagalli's got a point there. But to store your milk you need a milk expresser." said Kyo, pointing to the shelf opposite them where milk expressing kits were layed out in neat rows. There were different brands, some of the expressers more compact and some bulkier than ever.

"Since when did you know all this maternity stuff?" asked Miriallia, turning to Kyo and looking shocked. The auburn-haired girl didn't expect the redheaded tomboy to actually know about anything more other than how to get pregnant, how milk bottles looked like, and what teething rings were.

"Just because I'm not interested in maternity stuff, doesn't mean I don't have a clue about it. I know just as much as you two do, ok? I have to know some knowledge about all this anyway, I want to have kids too you know." said Kyo bluntly, pursing her lips and folding her arms.

"Did I just hear what she said?" asked Miriallia, turning to Cagalli, who was too busy reading information labels to give a damn about what her auburn-haired friend had actually said.

Miriallia was giggling away now. Kyo was actually talking about having kids of her own. As far as Miriallia knew, Kyo had never been the motherly type, before she met Yzak, she used to reject every guy that asked her out, even if he was drop dead gorgeous.

"What d'you find so funny, Mirre? Look, I'm may be tomboyish, and it doesn't change the fact that I'm a girl! Girls are made to get pregnant, give birth and have kids! So what's so wrong and funny about me haveing kids of my own?" questioned Kyo heatedly, hands on her hips and eyebrow furrowed at Miriallia.

"I... was just thinking... if you had kids with... hahahahahahahahahahaha... Yzak; there's already enough fire... around with... Yzak... I dont need... you to produce... another fire-breathing... baby!" squealed Miriallia, bursting into a fit of giggles and passing the bout on to Cagalli, who was now giggling as well.

Kyo snorted in annoyance, "For all you know it may not be Yzak that I would marry. It could some other guy," she hissed, folding her arms.

"Yeah, that's true, but we were just thinking about it, no need to get offended. I think you and Yzak look sweet together anyway, look how far the both of you have gone. You've managed to get him to manage his temper really well, and talk about the incident in the medical unit!" said Cagalli bursting out laughing, as she remembered Yzak slumped over Kyo on the hospital bed in the morning.

"We actually didn't do anything! Go ask Dr. Ishida if you don't believe me! I've still retained my virginity, thank you! We didn't go any further than undressing each other and petting and all." said Kyo, her cheeks turning a brilliant shade of magenta just thinking about what happened.

It was true though, she and Yzak didn't go any further than heavy petting. Although they were very close to crossing the line, since the entire orgy had gotten Yzak aroused at full blast. Thankfully, Kyo had managed to stop Yzak in time before he lost total control.

"I think we're done here, Cagalli. I mean you've got bottle teats, bottles, sterilisers and a milk expresser and all. I don't think you need anything more from here." said Miriallia brightly, pulling Cagalli away and heading toward a store which sold maternity clothes.

"Hello, my dears, can I help you?" asked a plump and stout old woman, the trio of girls assumed to be the shop owner. The shop owner would've reminded anyone of their grandmother, glasses worn at the tip of her nose, a long frilly skirt and curly greying hair.

Of course, I'm not saying that everyone's grandmother would look this way, but the shop owner was kind in a grandmotherly way.

"Umm yes, we're looking for some maternity wear for her. She's only about two months pregnant so, it's not too obvious yet." said Miriallia, smiling warmly at the shop owner, who smiled back toothily.

"Don't worry my dear, I'm sure there's something here that would fit you perfectly, and as soon as you know it, the nine months will fly past and you'll be able to cradle that newborn of yours." said the shop owner sweetly, fumbling around her rows of dresses.

Much to Kyo's surprise, the maternity wear shop didn't look much like a clothes shop that sold maternity wear, it looked more like any other clothes shop selling fashionable clothes. The redheaded girl had expected to see loose baggy floral dresses, long pleated work pants stretchy shirts and stuff, but what she saw was fashionable jeans, tank tops, tube tops, even mini skirts!

"You can call me Aunt Suzanne, don't bother calling me madam or anything, I'm not quite used to it." said the shop owner kindly, before walking over to Kyo. "And if you're wondering why the maternity wear I sell don't look like maternity wear at all, it's a long story."

"We'd gladly listen if you wouldn't mind telling us," said Kyo eagerly, much to the surprise of Cagalli and Miriallia, who thought that Kyo knowing about baby accessories was bad enough, much less be interested in maternity wear.

"Well, I started this business about two decades ago. I sold the usual stuff, loose dresses, long work pants and all, but my business only did average. So I started thinking on how I could make my business thrive." said Aunt Suzanne, clearing her throat and pushing up her glasses.

"That's when I noticed many young women, just like yourself, only in their teenage years, already becoming mothers." said Aunt Suzanne, gesturing kindly toward Cagalli, who just grinned gently. "So I started creating maternity clothes designed according to the latest fashion using stretchable materials like Lycra."

"That's a smart thing to do, so I guess many young mothers come here to buy maternity wear, eh?" said Miriallia smartly, laughing jovially along with Aunt Suzanne who nodded and winked at Cagalli.

"Where d'you live, my dear? I'm also a trained nurse, so I can be your midwife if you like." said Aunt Suzanne knowingly, placing a warm hand aon Cagalli's shoulder.

"It's time we enlighten you then, Aunt Suzanne. This is Cagalli Yula Athha, Princess of Orb. So we live at the Athha mansion." said Kyo, introducing Cagalli formally, and smiling gently at Aunt Suzanne, who bowed with respect.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Miss Athha, I've always supported your father's ideals." said Aunt Suzanne delightedly, taking Cagalli's hand in her own and rubbing it.

"I'm glad to hear that you support my father. Right now, many people are rebelling against Orb." sighed cagalli, shaking her head slowly, before grinning at Aunt Suzanne and moving off

Within ten minutes, Cagalli had already picked a number of tops and bottoms, ranging from tank tops to track pants. The blonde girl came in and out of the changing rooms a couple of times and finally settled on all her choices of clothes.

"So, no alterations needed. If you need me when the time for the baby comes just give me a tinkle, the number can be found in the shopping guide! Thank you for shopping here, have a nice day!" greeted Aunt Suzanne, sending Cagalli, Miriallia and Kyo on their way.

"She's was a pretty sweet lady," said Miriallia brightly, helping cagalli hold some of her shopping stuff and walking alongside the blonde Orb Princess. "And you don't have to worry now that she's already signed herself on as your midwife!"

"That just triggered a notion, Mirre. My baby may not be like others." said Cagalli, sounding a little apprehensive, as she felt her stomach gently.

"What's that supposed to mean?" asked Kyo stunned, quickening her pace and walking up to Cagalli, and looking eagerly at the Orb Princess, wondering what she meant by her most recent statement.

"Now that I think of it, my pregnancy may be different too. Athrun's a co-ordinator, don't forget that, and I'm a natural, which means our baby is a mix of our genes, which forms an entire new human breed." said Cagalli knowingly, looking up at Miriallia and Kyo, who seemed to have realised the consequences too.

"Cagalli's got a point there, but we'll just to go with the flow and pray that everything goes along normally." said Miriallia knowingly, taking Cagalli's arm and dragging her off. "Until then, we've got to go back and discuss this with the others, I'm sure they'll want to know."

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"Kira, you know it's really not your fault, so stop reproaching yourself." said Lacus knowingly, sitting beside Kira on his bed, and looking worriedly at the brunette co-ordinator.

"I know it's not, but I just need some time alone, to think. So if you do love me as much as you say so, then you'd respect my wishes and leave for the meantime." said Kira softly, looking away from Lacus.

"Kira, I love you more than I say, but if you want some time alone, then I shall grant you that wish then." said Lacus sighing and getting upf rom Kira's bed and walking past his desk.

However, the sweet pink-haired girl spotted a voice-recorder on Kira's desk and picked it up. "Kira, is this in use?"

The brunette young man looked up and examined the device for a umber of seconds before shaking his head. "No, but it's got a unused tape in there though, what d'you want it for?"

"I was just thinking, if I confronted Mia now, and asked her why she lied, she may confess, and if she does, I'll have it all recorded down into this." said Lacus smartly, waving the mechanical device in her right hand.

"True, but be careful. I don't want you to get hurt," said Kira concerned, standing up and walking over to his pink-haired girlfriend and planting a soft kiss on her cheek.

"I will," replied Lacus smiling warmly, before exitting Kira's room.

Brilliant, now all Lacus had to do was find Mia and confront her. Of course, she couldn't perform the entire operation in front of Athrun, she had to get Mia awayf rom Athrun first.

However, it saved Lacus the trouble of finding her impersonator when the very person came striding down the corridor, with no Athrun!

"Mia, can I have a word with you?" asked Lacus, wasting no time on the very perfect oppurtunity. Lacus fought to remain calm as Mia came striding toward her, smiling sweetly.

"Of course, I'd do anything for a word with my idol." said Mia jovially, standing in front of Lacus and giggling away.

"I'm not standing here with you to chat about popularity and fame, but about why you deceived Athrun." said Lacus sternly, hiding the voice-recorder behind her back and carefully switching it on.

"Oh that again. So what if I deceived Athrun? He's taken to me very well, and he believes every single word that spouts from my mouth. It'll be no problem getting more things out from him." said Mia maliciously.

"You're only taking advantage of him, aren't you? You just want him for yourself, don't you? You don't really love him at all." said Lacus heatedly, glaring at Mia, who looked satisfied with whatever she had been able to accomplish.

"Yes it's all true that I lied to him, that naive guy, and yes I don't love him either." said Mia, sneering maliciously and cackling away.

"Athrun is not and was never naive! You made him so!" exclaimed Lacus, unleashing her temper for the first time. The pink-headed girl was clearly infuriated by the situation, and was not about to let the girl in front of her make things worse.

"Yes I'm a genius in using Athrun this way, and it just proves that I'm not some dumb girl that's useless, and I'm also not that stupid as to let you record everything and expose me!" barked Mia, spinning Lacus around so violently and grabbing the voice-recorder from her, before smashing it to pieces by throwing it to the ground.

Lacus's eyes widened in horror, her evidence had been hopelessly destroyed, Mia had known she was recording it all along, she had just played along to annoy her at the very end by destroying everything!

Mia walked off laughing away in such a malicious way that she hardly projected anything about herself that was similar to Lacus in any way. Lacus stomped her foot on the ground and pounded her fist into her free hand.

All her efforts had been seemingly ruined and destroyed by the very person she wanted to expose. But what was done was done, nothing could change things around, as much as Lacus wished she could, it was impossible to turn back time.

Annoyed, infuriated and disappointed, Lacus headed back to Kira's bedroom, however she stopped in front of his door and remembered that he wanted to be left alone. Due to circumstances, Lacus turned on her heel and strided back to her own bedroom.

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"In a bad mood again are you, Yzak?" asked Dearka, coming into his suite to find the young Jule slumped on his bed and staring, eyebrows furrowed, at the ceiling.

Yzak just grunted in reply, before sitting upright on his bed, and aiming a crunched piece of paper into the waste paper basket in the far end of the room, and of course being a co-ordinator, getting the paper into the basket was a piece of cake.

The young Jule was pissed and annoyed that he had not been able to find Kyo anywhere he searched, and had resorted to returning to his room hoping she'd look for him there later on, but to no avail, she never came.

"Pissed that your girlfriend didn't look you up today?" asked Dearka, throwing a pillow at Yzak, which he expertly avoided. "One thing I can say is that the reason she didn't look you up is because she was forced to go shopping with Cagalli and Miriallia."

"Ok fine, I'll excuse Kyo since she was forced to tag along, but I won't let her off for not notifying me." hissed Yzak, folding his arms and leaning back on his pillow.

"Aw come on, you can't be that unreasonable. After all, she is your _girlfriend_, and I'm sure you don't want to hurt her again." teased Dearka, laughing away before slumping down on his bed as well.

"Shut up, it's not like you don't have a girlfriend. You've got Miriallia, haven't you? She's your _sweet baby girl_, always clinging onto you whenever you're with her." Yzak retorted, looking pissed at Dearka, who looked rather surprised.

"Well I've got to praise Kyo on one thing, she's taught you how to tease and joke with people!" exclaimed Dearka looking delighted. "It's more fun talking to you now,"

Yzak slammed his mouth shut and looked away from Dearka. So what if Kyo had softened him down by quite a bit? It wasn't going to change the fact that he could still blow his top if he wanted to.

"So, what have you and your ickle Kyo-kins been doing together lately?" asked Dearka curiously, wondering how Yzak was actually romancing his girlfriend. Knowing Yzak for years, Yzak never struck Dearka as the romantic type, he'd rather be isolated alone somewhere and behave anti-socially.

"She's not my _ickle Kyo-kins_!" barked Yzak lunging at Dearka and engaging in a playful boy's wrestling game.

Dearka toppled off his bed with Yzak onto the floor, "Oh yes, she so is! So let's see, you've been smooching her all over?"

"I have NOT! What about you? Have ever even kissed Miriallia?" asked Yzak, pinning Dearka to the floor, only to find the Dearka twisted his arm and threw him over instead.

Although he felt pissed, Yzak couldn't deny that he was having quite some fun wrestling with Dearka. It had been a long time since the last time he actually wrestled with Dearka.

"I won't tell you whether I've kissed her or not! It's none of your freakin' business! So mind your own beeswax!" exclaimed Dearka, aiming a playful punch at his platinum blonde friend.

"Look who's talking! You're the one who brought up the subject!" exclaimed Yzak, swining his leg over to one side and doing some odd move so that he twisted Dearka's arm and pinned the copper-tone skinned young man to the floor at the same time.

"Who the hell taught you that! We never learnt that move during training sessions!" whined Dearka, wanting to be released from the young Jule's killer grip.

"Kyo taught me that," hissed Yzak, smirking at Dearka before setting the blonde young man free, and letting him roll over onto his back panting.

"Wait... you wrestle... with her?" asked Dearka, still trying to catch his breath, as he stared up at her fellow comrade. Before Yzak could reply, Dearka burst out laughing, rolling around on the floor.

Yzak didn't catch Dearka's joke, or if it actually had meant to be a joke at all.

"Yzzie wrestles with his ickle Kyo-kins!" laughed Dearka rolling around and laughing like a mad man on the floor.

Yzak pinned Dearka to the floor once more, fist raised above the copper-tone skinned blonde's head.

Dearka shut his eyes for a moment before peeping at Yzak. "FINE! YOU WIN!"

_A/N: I had fun writing the last part where Yzak and Dearka wrestled! I mean they're only 17 so I decided to let out the boyish and playful side of them for once. Anyway, sorry for typo errors and pls review! _

_**In the next chapter: Kira is cheered up a whole lot when Cagalli talks to him privately, telling him she doesn't blame him for anything that's happened. Lacus tells the others about her disappointing encounter with Mia and Kira decides to confront Athrun this time round. Andrew and Murrue return and devise a plan with them to help Cagalli. **_


	16. Falling Into Place

Chapter 16 Falling Into Place

_A/N: Heya, this chapter is kind of interesting, there're no love scenes but it's interesting, if you don't read it you'll feel lost in my next few chappies! Anyway, happy reading!_

"So you're saying that Mia found out after all?" asked Kira, looking a little disappointed that Lacus had almost succeeded in getting evidence of Mia's cunning plans, but had failed in the end.

"Yeah, she had me on the entire time. She knew I was recording it from the start. No wonder I thought she was letting me in on it a little too easily. She wanted to humiliate me by letting me record everything then destroy it all!" said Lacus, feeling slightly pissed at her failure.

"At least you tried. Now that I think of it, Mia Campbell isn't as stupid as I thought she was, and I smell something fishy now that I'm mulling over this." said Kira knowingly, scratching his chin before looking up at Lacus, who was eagerly waiting for him to continue.

"Who would want revenge on Athrun the most for coming to Orb?" asked Kira, looking eagerly up at Lacus, who being Athrun's ex-fiance knew Athrun inside out from head to toe.

"We already had a suspect from long ago on that question, Kisaka. However, I'm beginning to think that it's not only Kisaka who wants revenge. Look how Kisaka just escaped and left not even a trail. Someone must be housing him somewhere, or the Orb police wouldn't have combed the entire country, before failing to find him." said Lacus knowingly, sitting down beside Kira on his bed and joining him in cracking their heads thinking.

"And wasn't Mia's appearance a little abrupt? I'm not saying that Murrue and Andy want revenge on Athrun, but Murrue did mention that Mia wanted to come along and pleaded them to let her do so. How did she know Athrun was hurt anyway? It wasn't advertised all around PLANTs was it?" questioned Kira, trying to make sense of everything.

Right now, the brunette young man was busy cracking his head and trying to fit pieces of information here and there, like trying to fit an anonymous piece into a 5000 piece jigsaw puzzle.

"As a matter of fact, the news of Athrun's injury was kept low profile. The only three people who were supposed to know were Murrue, Andrew and _Chairman Zala_." said Lacus, her face brightening up a little. "This is starting to make some sense. For one thing, Chairman Zala has never liked me, and look at Mia, she's an exact model of me. Chairman Zala has never really loved Athrun as a son anyway, he treats Athrun like any old military soldier."

"So in other words you're saying that the reason Mia is impersonating you is because Chairman Zala doesn't like you, and because you have so much influential power on the citizens of PLANTs, he hired Mia to take your place while you were here, to do his bidding!" exclaimed Kira, clapping his hands together and praising himself silently on making sense of what Lacus had said.

"Exactly! And since Chairman Zala sent Athrun on his mission here to assassinate Cagalli, it gives him a perfect reason to want revenge on Athrun for failing the mission!" said Lacus smartly.

"But how did Chairman Zala know that Athrun failed his mission in the first place?" asked Kira, his eyebrows furrowing as he dug up another uncertainty.

"Good question, I have a feeling this has got something to do with Kisaka." said Lacus knowingly, looking sternly at Kira before jumping slightly as there was a loud knock on the door.

"Come in!" called Kira loudly, so that whoever it was that was outside could hear his words.

"So the both of you are here? And doing what may I know? Look what we bought for Cagalli!" exclaimed Miriallia, holding up a few pairs of track pants and some other tops.

Apparently, the whole bunch of their others friends were waiting outside the door way, and in seconds all of them field into Kira's room before, Dearka who was the last to enter, closed the door. In addition, even Murrue and Andrew were there.

"We were just discussing suspects." said Kira sternly, looking at the others, who settled around the room, seeming eager to listen. "And we've come up with a rough idea of how everything seemed to have happened too. Who the suspects might be, and it all makes sense."

"Go on then, we're eager to hear!" said Andy, sitting beside Murrue, and sicne he was called the 'Coffee Man', he was sipping a mug of hot coffee.

"Wait, you're saying that you've actually managed to figure out who was behind Athrun's injuries and everything else?" asked Kyo shocked, and sitting on Yzak's lap since there was a shortage of chairs.

"Right you are, Kyo. I confronted Mia alone yesterday, bringing with me nothing else but a voice-recorder. I questioned her and she revealed everything about her cunning plans to me." said Lacus, stopping to swallow some saliva and clear her throat.

"Brilliant! Now we've got evidence!" exclaimed Dearka excitedly, looking happily at Lacus and Kira, who sighed deeply.

"That's not all, and don't get all excited, it's not what you think. Mia knew I was recording everything right from the beginning, and she humiliated me in the end by destroying the entire voice-recorder along with the tape inside it." explained Lacus, clenching her fist and biting her lip.

"Continue, what else have you figured out?" asked Cagalli, listening intently to whatever Kira was now saying.

"I also have a feeling that Kisaka has a conncection with Chairman Zala and Mia. If not, why did everythig start happening after Athrun was knocked out by him?" said Kira knowingly, wringing his hands in his lap.

"Hold on a sec, we can't just malign Kisaka like that, for all you know he may be innocent." said Miriallia knowingly, trying to stop her friends from jumping to conclusions.

"We're not maligning him Mirre! Why else would he have fled! He's the only person who had access to Athrun's room with a suitable motive! Besides, when the Orb police called for him in a news flash, he didn't respond or anything. If he had nothing to fear why did he hide away?" asked Cagalli knowingly, contradicting Miriallia's statement.

"Cagalli's got a very good point there. Besides, what Kira said could be true. Chairman Zala could've told Mia about Athrun and sent her here to make trouble when he discovered Murrue and Andy were coming here. Also, Kisaka could've contacted Chairman Zala and complained to him about his hate for co-ordinators and that Athrun ahd failed his mission." said Dearka smartly, saying something serious that made sense for once.

"That's exactly what I said, and I believe in it. Kisaka could've blabbed it all to Chairman Zala, and recognising the hate for Athrun in Kisaka's voice, Chairman Zala could've decided to use Kisaka to harm Athrun as a start to his plan." said Kira firmly.

"I never knew Chairman Zala was such a scheming person. So Chairman Zala wants to hurt Athrun and bring him back onto his side again, eh?" said Cagalli, scratching her head and propping herself higher up onto her chair.

"Yes, my thoughts exactly and I think he wanted to hurt Athrun as a way of punishing him for failing the mission and falling in love with Cagalli. And Mia was sent here to make sure that Athrun didn't go bounding back to Cagalli." said Lacus knowingly.

"Looks like Chairman Zala did succeed in making sure Athrun didn't come back to me." said Cagalli softly, though she was loud enough for the others to hear.

"Cagalli, once we think of a plan to expose Mia and banish all those hateful thoughts from Athrun's mind, I promise you you'll have Athrun back by your side." said Kira determinedly.

"I've never helped you much regarding this situation, but I'm going to slog my guts out doing all I can to help you from now onwards." said Kira, getting up and moving towards Cagalli before kneeling down in front of her and looking determiendly up at his sister.

"You know what, I just thought of a very brilliant way to expose Mia." said Murrue, looking brightly at the bunch of teenagers. "We won't need any evidence at all, all we need is a good sense of impersonation and time."

"How are we supposed to expose Mia without any evidence, Murrue?" asked Andy, putting down his mug of coffee and staring blankly at her.

"Simple, Lacus you're going to have to play a major role in this." said Murrue, standing up and moving toward the bunch of teenagers and standing in the middle of the circle created by the bunch seated around the room.

"As you all know, Mia is a splitting image of Lacus, and vice-versa. So all we've got to do, is get Lacus to impersonate Mia and simply tell Athrun that Mia's been lying. So basically, if Lacus dresses up as Mia and confronts Athrun all she'll have to say are things like, "Athrun, it's time I stop lying to you. Everthing I said about..." and blah blah blah it goes on!" said Murrue brightly, looking at the others.

Kira looked delighted as though he could just run to Murrue and kiss her a million times. "Of course! Why didn't any of us think of that? Murrue you're a genius!" he exclaimed.

Murrue looked ecstatic, and Miriallia and Kyo were hugging Cagalli in hope that this plan would work out and save the day. Cagalli was looking on the verge of tears as she was bear hugged by her two other friends.

"But while we have Lacus confronting Athrun, we need to find a way to get stupid Mia out of the way. We can't possibly carry this plan out succesfully if that freakin' Mia was standing there and watching!" voiced out Yzak, getting the others' attention.

"I'm fully aware of that, Yzak. Of course, we have yet to find a means of distracting Mia, but when there's a will there's a way!" said Murrue euphorically, smiling at the platinum blonde who just pursed his lips.

_**3 Months Later**_

After months of preparation and planning, the bunch were finally ready to carry out their little plan. They would've carried the plan out sooner if Aunt Suzanne, whom they had turned to for help when it came to creating a costume like what Mia usually wore, hadn't fallen sick for an entire month, slowing down her progress on the costume.

They had spent a lot of time thinking on how to distract Mia while they carried out their plan, and after many suggestions they rested upon the decision that Lord Uzumi summon her to his office for a talk about Orb's politics, and apparently, the Lion of Orb didn't have any objections. He loved telling people about Orb's ideals and wellfares, after all, Orb was his beloved nation.

Things had also been busy as Lord Uzumi had requested for them to help with christmas decorations as christmas was merely less than a week away.

Cagalli's pregnancy was doing well, and she had suffered no problems except for mild backaches, which Kira gladly helped her ease by massaging her with the help of Lacus and Miriallia. While Kyo was usually the one running up and all over the Athha mansion getting food Cagalli was craving for or simply getting some things done for Cagalli.

Although the blonde Orb Princess was only 5 to 6 months pregnant, he stomach was unusually large, like that of a heavily pregnant woman who was close to birth. However, this didn't worry Cagalli much, as she was quite eager to meet her baby.

Mia and Athrun had remained at Orb as well, as even though Athrun was discharged, he still needed weekly chekcups for the next few months. So preferrably they stayed at Orb so that Dr. Ishida could help. The duo hadn't found out about the bunch's plan either, as the bunch had done an excellent job of keeping it on a low profile.

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"Kira?" said Cagalli softly, pushing open the door of her brother's bedroom, to find the brunette young man seated by his desk and revising the schedule for the plan.

"Oh Cagalli, it's you, what's up?" asked Kira, standing up and hurrying over to his sister before helping her settle down on the edge of his bed.

"I just heard from Lacus about the saddened state you were in a few months ago. About how depressed you were about ot being able to help me and all." said Cagalli, gesturing for Kira to sit down next to her.

Kira's face fell slightly, before he sighed and rolled up the sleeves of his shirt. "Yes, I was raher depressed. I mean I've done nothing but annoy you all these years, and when you needed help, I couldn't help you."

Kira could feel the cuilt rising in his chest and the sinking feeling in his stomach. He felt like crying now, he was still feeling guilty and regretted not being able to help Cagalli before.

"But you have, Kira. If it wasn't for you and Lacus, we'd never had devised such a brilliant plan. You don't know how grateful I'll be if it all works out, in fact you don't know how grateful and touched I am right now." said Cagalli knowingly, lifting Kira's chin to see his eyes filled with tears.

"I'm such a letdown, and I know it." said Kira, tears falling from his violet eyes onto his lap, soaking into his jeans.

"Hush now, you know you've done your best the past few months, and I'll thank you for it, even my baby will thank you when it's born." said Cagalli, taking Kira's hand and placing it on her stomach. "See, it's kicking. It agrees with me, now stop crying before I accuse you of being a crybaby, and not to mention, the younger of us both."

Kira looked up at Cagalli, before laughing slightly, and using the back of his hand to wipe away his tears. "Your baby sure is an active one, just like his mother."

Cagalli laughed, "I hope he grows up to be like Athrun before Athrun became this way. I want my baby to be just as handsome and charismatic."

"I'm sure it will Cagalli, if it's a girl it'll be absolutely beautiful and that at that no guy in the entire universe can listen to her name and look at her picture without wetting his pants." said Kira humourously, his cheeks still tear-stained.

"Don't exaggerate Kira. I want her to be beautiful but not beautiful to the point that she will have a dozen guys drooling lustfully after her." retorted Cagalli knowingly, reaching out and messing up Kira's hair playfully.

"Where's Lacus?" asked Kira, before neatening his hair again like a guy who was very vain indeed.

"She's in her room, getting ready with the help of Miriallia and Kyo. Apparently, their trying to make her look as much as Mia as possible." said Cagalli laughing mirthfully, and rubbing noses with Kira, who laughed as well.

"Can I go take a look at her? Whatever Kyo and Miriallia do to her, make sure they can undo it, I want the original Lacus and not the new Mia-looking one." said Kira, getitng up and helping Cagalli to her feet before heading off with his sister in the direction of Lacus's bedroom.

However, when Kira and Cagalli came to Lacus's bedroom, the trio of girls were laughing away. Indeed, Lacus did look like a splitting image of Mia now, and no doubt was she ready.

However, the one who was being made up to look good now, was none other than Kyo, who had been forced into a chair while Miriallia put makeup all over her face. Kyo's hair had also been twisted into an elegant tight knot at the back of her head.

"I can't deny it Kyo, and I'm not lying to you or anything, but you look gorgeous! You look so pretty! Oh my gosh!" exclaimed Cagalli upon seeing her female bodyguard, who looked blunt and pissed.

"Yeah I know! And after this, we're going to put her into one of those dresses that've never been worn in her wardrobe! She'll be dressed to kill!" said Miriallia excitedly, applying a little more gloss on Kyo's lips.

"Why would you want to dress Kyo up anyway? What for?" asked Kira curiously, taking a good look at Kyo and nodding his head, as though saying, "Yep, she's pretty alright."

"We're planning on making her go on a date with Yzak like this. Yzak'll be drooling all over her!" squealed Miriallia, before ursting into a fit of giggles.

Lacus cleared her throat, "Miriallia, if you're thinking of making Kyo up so that she'll be too irresistible for Yzak to take, then I think there's a need to remind you that abstinence is encouraged before marriage."

"I agree, Mirre. If Yzak wants _it_ he'll jolly well have to wait till we're married, that is, if I marry him." said Kyo firmly, nodding in approval of Lacus's words.

However, ebfore Kyo could protest further, she was forced into the toilet by Miriallia, who was carrying a white shimmering dress, which was bare-backed and pretty low cut at the front.

"Are you ready, Lacus? Once you are I'll call Lord Uzumi and tell him to summon Mia, then when we find Athrun we could tell him that Lord Uzumi cancelled the meeting with Mia, who is of course, you." said Kira knowingly, smiling warmly at Lacus before enveloping her in a hug.

"I want to see how Kyo looks like first," said Lacus sweetly.

Just then, Dearka and Yzak entered the room looking ready for business.

"We know out positions, look out for Mia coming back along the corridor and around the corners." said Dearka saluting Kira and Lacus.

"Oh ho, Yzak boy are you in for a surprise." said Cagalli giggling away as Yzak looked at her questioningly.

Within minutes, Kyo exitted the bathroom looking absolutely stunning. So stunning that Dearka fell to his knees on the floor, much to Miriallia's dismay, and even Kira nearly tripped over a backpack on the floor.

As for Yzak, tsk tsk, all I can say is that he was so shocked that his jaw was hanging wide open, and he wet his pants. Of course, he didn't wet is pants in front of the others, but he did in the bathroom, and how did the others find out? When he asked Dearka to get him a new set of underwear and pants!

_A/N: Ok, I know this chappie was kind of short, but I'm really short on time. I'm preparing for my voyage to New Zealand, so things are really hectic right now. This may be the the last or the second last chapter I'm updating before a stretch of time where I won't be able to update at all, as when I get to New Zealand, I may not have internet access for a while, but rest assured I will update! Sorry for typo errors and pls review!_

_**In the next chapter: The bunch carry out their plan and Lacus confronts Athrun posing as Mia. Athrun seems suspicious though he still listens to what Lacus is saying, as she poses as Mia. Cagalli goes into labour, however, is the labour the will of nature, or is it a complication in her pregnancy? **_


	17. An Exhausting Birth

Chapter 17 An Exhausting Birth

_A/N: I know the last chapter was kind of short, really sorry, but I was really short on time. I sort of fast forwarded the time as well, as I couldn't possibly go and on and on elaborating, so I just made it 3 months later. The characters all seem their plan will be successful, but will it? Well you'll just have to read and find out, hehe! Happy reading!_

"Lord Uzumi, we're all ready, you can summon Mia now. Be sure to give us at least 15 minutes time though. That should be enough for us to explain everything and escape." said Kira, speaking softly through his mobile phone to the Lion of Orb.

Within seconds of ending the call, Kira stuffed his phone back into the front pocket of his Levi's jeans before smiling and nodding at the others. "We'll have to wait a while to let Mia proceed to Lord Uzumi's office before setting off."

"Understood," said Lacus breathing in deeply, and trying to calm herself. The pink-headed girl had the jitters, her knees were shaking and she had butterflies swooping and flying around wildy in her stomach.

"Good luck, Lacus, we're all counting on you. Though we will be stationed nearby at corridors, you're doing the main job, confronting our target." said Dearka saluting Lacus playfully, before studying a hand-drawn map of their plan, made by Kira.

"Now, if Mia comes along too early, and Lacus hasn't exitted Athrun's bedroom, do your best to distract her, so be it a stupid or nonsensical distraction, just try to buy Lacus more time." said Murrue firmly, who was also studying one of the maps drawn by Kira. She was to be stationed one corridor away from Lord Uzumi's office with Andy, in case Mia came out.

Murrue would have top alert the others by calling them on their mobile phones and letting the phone ring once as a signal. The all clear signal was of course, to be sent by Lacus, who would let the phone ring three times.

"I certainly hope this works out, no doubt I have faith in all of you, but if fate decides to intervene today, then there's nothing we can do to prevent it." said Cagalli feeling ehr baby move around energetically within her.

"Cagalli, I can't guarantee you that this will work out, but if we can't get Athrun to come to his senses and return him to you, then by all means, when your baby is born we will all do our part in helping you." said Kyo determinedly, walking up to the blonde Orb Princess and putting an arm around her.

Kyo had changed out of the body-baring dress Miriallia had forced her to wear, but there was unfortunately no time for her to wash the excessive make-up off her face. Therefore, it left the attractive redheaded girl feeling rather cakey.

As for Yzak, he was still too embarrassed about his pants-wetting incident to look Kyo straight in the eye for the meantime. However, his little mishap didn't deter him from wanting to help in the plan.

Kira refused to let Cagalli help as since the blonde girl was expecting, the brunette young man didn't want any accidents.

"Ok, it's time. Let's go, ganbatte!" said Kira, leading the way stealthily out of the bedroom. Athrun was most likely to be in his own bedroom since he hardly ever went anywhere without Mia.

"To your positions everyone!" said Kira in a loud whisper, within seconds everyone cleared the corridor and proceeded to their respective positions.

"Good luck, Lacus, if you desperately need help, just scream, I'll be waiting outside over here." said Kira, watching as Lacus pushed open Athrun's bedroom door and enter, before swinging the door shut.

Sure enough, the charming blue-haired co-ordinator was seated by his desk and reading a book, which looked something like a bible, though it wasn't.

"Oh Mia, you're back, that was quick? It took you only a mere five minutes to meet the Lion of Orb?" asked Athrun, standing up and proceeding toward Lacus, and planting a passionate kiss on her lips, believing she was Mia.

"Err... aah yes, he actually just wanted to tell me a few things." said Lacus uneasily, inching away from Athrun.

"I see, what did he tell you?" asked Athrun curiously, eager to hear a reply.

Lacus froze dumbstruck, she wasn't expecting things to turn out like this, and she didn't come up with a reply for his question either! But nevertheless, she had to try, she didn't want to let Kira, the others and most of all, Cagalli, down.

"He just said he was... err... lonely and so he told me about... the err... ideals of Orb." said Lacus, sighing silently in her mind now that she had come up with a perfectly logical answer.

"Oh," said Athrun, returning to his book once more and turning away from Lacus.

"Athrun, I've got something else to tell you, I don't think I should keep you in the dark any longer." said Lacus slowly, looking at Athrun innocently and twisting her body around the way Mia did.

However, Lacus didn't sound much like Mia, her voice was a little higher than Mia's, while Mia's voice was brighter and more girlish, and Athrun seemed to have sensed that. Mia also had a different way of speaking, she spoke in a more smutty way.

"What is it, Mia? You know you can tell me anything, honeybunny, are you alright though? You sound funny," said Athrun suspiciously, getting up and walking over to Lacus, before wrapping his arms around her.

"Well you know about Cagalli, Kira and the others, about what I told you about them? Abotu Cagalli being a playgirl prostitute and the rest being gangsters or cannibals and whatever else?" said Lacus, trying to immitate Mia's voice as much as possible.

Athrun just grunted in reply, as now he was snuffling around Lacus's neck and licking her. Lacus couldn't help but feel very uncomfortable and afraid, the Athrun who was her former-fiance was never this horny and frisky.

"Did you change your perfume? You smell different," mumbled Athrun, nipping gently at Lacus's ear. The pink-headed girl couldn't help but feel goosebumps form on her skin.

"Yes I did, d'you like it? Anyway, everything I've told you about them, they're all lies." said Lacus, finally starting on some kind of explanation.

"You're kidding me, as far as I know, they're so annoying and keep harassing us. Besides, that Cagalli girl is pregnant now, did you notice? Probably with some playboy's child, serves her right." said Athrun, planting kisses down Lacus's slender neck.

Lacus couldn't help but want to show Athrun the naked truth, the truth that the baby Cagalli was carrying was none other than his, and that she and the others were no cannibals, gangsters or prostitues.

"I've been lying to you all this while Athrun. The others are not like that, they're perfectly normal people. I lied because I wanted you to myself, but the truth is that I've been lying." said Lacus, pulling away from Athrun and looking at him.

Athrun looked really suspicious now, he was eyeing Lacus closely, observing her every movement and facila expression.

Meanwhile, Lord Uzumi had not been able to keep Mia in his office any longer, and the pink-haired impersonator seemed to smell soemthing very fishy anyway. Mia stormed out of the office and came face to face with Murrue and Andrew.

The brunette woman quickly sent a signal to the others indicating that Mia was on the loose, while Andrew disracted her with a very rash and stupid distraction.

Andrew got down on one knee, and stared up at Mia in such a fake loving way. "Oh my love, how I have longed for this day! When I can finally kneel in front of you and tell you of my feelings for you!"

Murrue couldn't help but eye the grown man weirdly, certainly he had come up with a distraction, but it was utterly stupid and obviously a distraction.

Andrew grabbed Mia's right hand and kissed it tenderly, "My love, will you marry me?"

Mia wrenched her hand from his grip, staring disgusted down at him. "No, I will not you slimeball! No doubt you may be kind of good looking, but it's impossible between us."

Mia darted past Murrue and Andrew who scrambled to his feet and followed the impersonator along with Murrue in pursuit. The others had been notified of Mia's escape from Lord Uzumi's office and were on the alert.

"Hello, where d'you think you're going?" asked Yzak, blocking Mia's pathway to the next corridor adjacent from the first. The platinum blonde had his arms outstretched blocking Mia from pushing past him.

"Get out of my way, you brute! What'cha going to do if I push past you? Hit me? You wouldn't dare!" asked Mia, glaring annoyed at Yzak, whose anger was also on the rise as Mia had called him a brute.

Yzak had no choice but feel Mia push past him, however, another obstacle greeted Mia as she passed Yzak, who was standing beside Murrue and Andy now.

"He wouldn't dare hit a girl, but I WOULD!" exclaimed Kyo, greeting Mia abruptly as she swung her hand violently at the pink-haired impersonator's face. Mia's reaction after the slap proved that she wasn't as soft as she looked.

Mia stumbeld slightly ebfore getting back on her feet and standing to full height and facing Kyo. Although Mia was slightly taller than Kyo because of her heeled-shoes, Kyo still stood her ground. '

"You _bitch_!" squealed Mia, clutching her left cheek where Kyo had struck her hard and fast. However, catching the redheaded girl off guard, Mia rammed forward straight at Kyo who didn't expect Mia's reaction.

Kyo was thrown fast and furious off her feet as she flew backwards before hitting the wall beind her and sinking down into a sitting position. Kyo's face was scrunched up into a painful expression, which sent a pang of pure worry through Yzak.

Murrue and Andy chased after Mia once more, Dearka and Miriallia, who were waiting at the very next corridor, where Athrun's bedroom was along with Kira, was the last row of defense.

It seemed very easy to stop Mia, however, Kira and Lacus had set a rule, that none of them should lay a finger on Mia, however, as you read earlier on, Kyo clearly flouted that rule.

"I knew it! All this had something to do with you guys and Athrun! What're you doing to him now?" hissed Mia, stopping in front of Athrun's bedroom door, which all three of Miriallia, Dearka and Kira were blocking.

"The real question should be, what've you done to him? It's all because of you that Cagalli had to suffer so badly, and it's also your fault that Athrun actually hates us now." said Miriallia sarcastically, glaring angrily at Mia.

"I don't care what you people say! Move aside! I had my reasons for doing everything I did!" said Mia hotly, staring especially at Kira, who was staring eyebrows furrowed at her.

"You had reasons, eh? You're just following orders from Chairman Zala, aren't you? You have a conncection with him, and I'm guessing Kisaka too." Kira snapped, bolting himself firmly against the doorway.

"You're smart, looks like you've figured out part of Chairman Zala's scheming plans. Yes, he was the one who notified me and instructed me to do everything I did, and yes, kisaka is involved. In fact, as you may have already figured, he was the one who actually hurt Athrun the first time round, I salute him on it too." said Mia, winking smuttily at Kira, who just glared at her angrily.

"How could you be so proud of all you've done? Of all the hurt you've caused Cagalli and the sticky situation you and your comrades have thrown all of us into?" asked Miriallia harshly, looking exasperatedly at Mia, who was just smirking away maliciously.

"If you don't move aside, I'm going to have to ram my way past you. Just like I did with Kyo earlier," snarled Mia, looking at Kira before looking sideways at Yzak, who was supporting a frail looking Kyo, who had apparently thrown up seconds after being hit in the stomach by Mia.

"I won't forgive you for everything you've done, not only to Cagalli and the rest of us, but for hurting Kyo as well!" said Yzak heatedly, thinking of lunging at Mia, only to realise that Kyo needed him right then.

However, just then, Lacus opened the bedroom door, indicating that she had fiished the job, however, it was only the beginning of their problems. Mia was there, and the minute Athrun saw _two_ Mias, it would reveal their entire plan.

However, what the others were hoping that would not come true, came true. Athrun appeared by the door beside Lacus, before his eyes widened in shock.

"I knew it! I knew this was all a sham! You're actually Lacus Clyne aren't you? No wonder I thought Mia was acting rather weirdly, because she was actually Lacus Clyne!" yelled Athrun, attempting to hit Lacus, only to be taken on by an infuriated Kira.

"You BASTARD! WHY HAVE YOU BECOME SO FOOLISH AND NAIVE? WHY DID YOU LET A BIMBO POSION YOUR MIND? WHY DON'T YOU JUST COME TO YOUR SENSES AND REALISE THE BLOODY TRUTH! MIA IS LYING TO YOU! CAGALLI IS ALSO PREGNANT WITH YOUR FREAKIN' BABY! YEAAAARGH!" hollered Kira, grabbing Athrun by the collar of his shirt and throwing him to the floor, however, in the midst of doing so, Athrun's head hit the doorway, and he was knocked clean out.

Kira watched in horror at an uncosncious Athrun as blood flowed from the blue-haired co-ordinator's head. The brunette young man took a few steps back, feeling absolutely horrorstruck before bumping into Mia, who was standing directly behind him looking just as dumbstruck and at a loss for words.

"Kira, what've you done?" asked Lacus, looking at the uncosncious Athrun, lying sprawled on his back on the marble floor.

"I... I didn't mean to... I never expected... no... NO!" hollered Kira loudly, falling to his knees by an unconscious Athrun and feeling the pearly tears cloud his vision. He was supposed to bring Athrun back to Cagalli, not hurt him further!

What was Cagalli going to say? Although Athrun was still alive but unconscious, his condition could worsen further and it could prove fatal.

"Someone get medical help from the medical unit, hurry!" said Mia sounding worried, though Kira suspected that she wasn't worried for Athrun, but rather worried for herself.

Sure enough, Kira's assumption proved to be true.

"Athrun can't die on me now. I'll be beheaded if he does, I was ordered to bring him back alive to Chairman Zala." said Mia crouching down and checking Athrun's vital signs.

Dearka who had run off to get help came back minutes later, Dr. Ishida trailing along behind. Dearka had apparently explained everything to Dr. Ishida on the way back to the scene, and upon arriving, the senior doctor jumped into action.

Dr. Ishida paged for a few nurses, who arrived about a minute later carrying a stretcher. The nurses expertly lifted Athrun onto the stretcher, two wincing slightly at the blue-haired young man's weight.

Just then, Kira's handphone rang. The brunette young man, who was too stoned to answer it, looked over at Lacus who answered it for him.

"Hello?" said Lacus formally.

"K-Lacus! I need help! Aaaaah! Ow! I don't know why, but I've started getting contractions! I'm... aaaaah... scared, it's only been 5 and a half months... why am I... ow... going into labour now?" came the worried voice of Cagalli over the other line.

"Hang in there, Cagalli! We're coming, all of us are!" said Lacus frantically, telling Kira about Cagalli's premature labour, which startled the brunette young man who immediately snapped back into reality and hopped into action.

Lacus, Dearka and Miriallia followed along behind. Yzak was slightly delayed as Kyo had said she felt faint and that her stomach was hurting badly, and so the circumstances had forced the platinum blonde to take his girlfriend in his arms and carry her.

Kyo had to admit that the pain she felt physically in her stomach was almost unbearable if not for Yzak's strong arms wrapped around her, she might've fainted right on the spot.

Mia had punched while she rammed into Kyo, and the pink-haired impersonator probably hit the spot where Kyo's wound had been.

Kira burst into Lacus's room, to find Cagalli lying against a pillow on the carpeted flooring of the pink-headed girl's room. She was panting and clutching her stomach at the same time.

"Cagalli, how d'you feel? Are you ok? Hang in there, Dr. Ishida is busy with Athrun at the moment. I accidentally knocked Athrun unconscious," said Kira, before he clamped his hand over his mouth. The brunette co-ordinator had not planned on telling the blonde Orb Princess yet, however, his mouth seemed to have blurted it out.

"You WHAT? How's Athrun? Is he alright? What did Dr. Ishida say? Can he be saved?" asked Cagalli saying all she could before she was hit by a second bout of painful contractions.

"Dr. Ishida didn't say anything, but I think that he will be alright. Right now, focus on yourself. I've heard that Co-ordinator babies are born one or two months earlier than Natural babies. But yours is still premature." said Lacus, not wanting to worry Cagalli but knowing that the blonde girl had a right to know.

"I guess I'll have to go with the flow! Aaaaah! ATHRUN!" yelled Cagalli, clutching her stomach as she felt another contraction.

"By the way, why are you on the floor?" asked Miriallia, looking at Cagalli sitting up against a pillow on the floor.

"I wet Lacus's bed when my waters broke, sorry Lacus... AAAAAAAAH! ATHRUN!" said Cagalli, panting as she drew in jerking rbeaths of air. Kira could see that his sister was close to tears, as she bore the pains of childbirth.

"Why is this... so hard? It hurts so badly! Aaaaaah! Athrun! Aaah! Athrun, where are you? Why can't you be here right now? Aaaaaah!" screamed Cagalli, throwing her head backwards as she burst into tears crying.

Most of the time when a baby was born, the mother would have the baby's father there to support and encourage her. The father would be there to help her through the pain and difficulties.

However, Cagalli was all alone. Not alone in that sense that she was literally alone, but Athrun was not there with her. Yes, he was unconscious, but even if he was conscious, she doubted that given the man he changed to, he wouldn't have even bothered to come and see her.

"Ok, Cagalli, relax and breathe! In and out, yes, that's it!" said Miriallia, encouraging Cagalli and giving examples on how to breath as though she was a midwife. However, the auburn-haired girl was stopped midway when something heavy hit her, causing her to stumble forward.

Miriallia gasped when she realised it was Kyo who had just fell to the floor. The attractive redhead seemed to be unconscious, and indeed she looked really pale like a sheet of blank white paper.

"Kyo! KYO!" screamed Yzak, shaking Kyo by the shoulders in hope that the redheaded girl would arouse and reply to him. The young Jule cursed inside his head, wishing that he could kill Mia Campbell. It was all because of her that Kyo was in this state. even though Kyo had been discharged months ago, the spot where her wound had been was still weak.

"Oh dear, another casualty! What now? Dr. Ishida is busy!" said Dearka, beginning to panic as he saw his platinum blonde comrade cradle his girlfriend apprehensively.

"We're all aware of that, Dearka! Now get a hold of yourself! I know who can help Cagalli, Aunt Suzanne!" said Lacus brightly, sponging Cagalli's forehead as she pushed hard.

"I'm not too sure about trusting Aunt Suzanne with this. You know her age, she's not very young at all. Anyway, I think Cagalli'd do fine with you around, Lacus. Now we've got to help Kyo," said Miriallia, turning to face Yzak who was carrying an unconscious Kyo in his arms.

"Ow! Aaaaaah! Athrun!" screamed Cagalli once more, a new stream of fresh tears cascading down her rosy cheeks, which were now bathed in her sweat.

"Cagalli, conserve your energy, don't shout any longer! I know how much you want Athrun to be by your side right now, but you know that's impossible! Relax, breathe, focus and do your best!" said Kira encouragingly, placing his hand on Cagalli's trembling shoulder.

"I'm bringing Kyo down to the medical unit! The nurses might be able to freakin' do something!" said Yzak, rushing out of the bedroom, Kyo lying bridal-style in his arms. Dearka tagged along as Miriallia had instructed in case Yzak needed a hand with anything.

"Ow! It hurts badly! Somebody help me! Aaaaaaah!" exclaimed Cagalli as she pushed with all her might when the contractions hit her.

For some reason, Cagalli felt frail and exhausted. She had absolutely no strength left to push any longer. She wanted Athrun, she wanted him to be there to hold her and encourage her, but what Kira said was true, Athrun couldn't possibly be there to help her right now.

"Cagalli you can do this! You know it!" said Miriallia, holding Cagalli's hand while Lacus went to change the water being used to sponge Cagalli's forehead.

The room door burst open again, this time letting an anxious looking Lord Uzumi into Lacus's bedroom.

"Cagalli! How're you? You feeling alright?" asked Lord Uzumi, crouching down beside his adoptive daughter and taking her other free hand and squeezing it as the blonde Orb Princess pushed again.

"Father, I'm scared! I can't do this! I can't!" said Cagalli pushing once again with all the strength she could muster.

"Yes, you can! Now do your best, think of the joy you could receive when your baby is born!" said Lord Uzumi, shaking Cagalli gently, and kissing her gently on the cheek.

"Cagalli you're doing well! You're almost there! I can see the baby!" said Lacus, peering in-between Cagalli's legs.

"For the sake of my beautiful baby, I'm willing to push myself to death!" Cagalli thought to herself, squeezing Miriallia and Lord Uzumi's hands as she screamed out pushing as hard as she could.

Cagalli fell back onto her pillow breathing, for a moment she saw black before the cries of a baby echoed throughout Lacus's bedroom, bouncing off the walls. Realising the baby was not fully born yet, Cagalli gave one last push before Lacus slowly guided the tiny bundle of joy out with a towel.

"Well done Cagalli!" cheered Kira, crouching down beside Miriallia and smiling warmly at his exhausted blonde sister, who was just glad that the entire ordeal was over.

Lacus proceeded into the bathroom to wash the baby clean.

"Oh my gosh! It's a boy! And he's so handsome!" squealed Lacus as she came back out of the bathroom, cradling the crying newborn in her arms.

The pink-haired girl handed the baby boy to it's mother who cradled it gently in her arms, cooing softly as she bonded with it.

Indeed, the baby was a boy, and my, was he ever so handsome. Somehow, he just reminded Cagalli of Athrun, he was probably the splitting image of Athrun when he was a baby.

The baby was a rosy shade of peach, just like Cagalli's skin tone. The baby also had a tiny tuft of blue hair on it's head and gorgeous emerald eyes, Athrun's eyes. Miriallia couldn't help but gasp and ogle at the adorable bundle of joy.

"He's an angel, Cagalli. I guess I'm a grandpa now, eh?" said Lord Uzumi laughing merrily and gazing down at his grandson, who was now suckling contentedly from Cagalli's breast.

"I'm proud of you Cagalli," said Kira, gazing lovingly down at his twin sister who just smiled back, her eyes filled with tears of joy.

_A/N: Mabuhay! Kamusta ka? Ok sorry, that was just a tiny bit of tagalogue for those of you who are filipinos or filipinas. But I'm not from Philipines though, I'm from Singapore! Anyway, sorry for typo errors and pls review!_

_**In the next chapter: Yzak is extremely worried upon hearing that Kyo's situation has to wait while Dr. Ishida deals with Athrun, and the young Jule goes after Mia Campbell in search of revenge. ****Cagalli spends most of her time with her baby, however, she decides to bring the baby, whom she has named Aaron Zala, down to the medical unit to visit Athrun. Will Mia stop her again? Also, Athrun wakes up, nut he has changed again, how will everything go? **_

**_P.S: This may be the last chapter I will upload for a stretch of time, as I will be migrating to New Zealand on 4th Jan 2006, and things are really busy at the moment, sorry to keep you guys waiting! But do not worry, I will update as soon as I can!_**


	18. Anger & Suspense

Chapter 18 Anger & Suspense

_A/N: Ok, sorry I took kind of long to update, as I'm sure most of you know that I just migrated to New Zealand. Well, you can all be at ease now as this is yet another chappie! Anyway, I've been estimating a little and I think this fanfic is going to be around 20 chapters or more, I don't think it'll cross the 30 chapter mark, hehe. But do not despair though, I have plans for another Athrun&Cagalli fanfic, I'll let you know the details in due time. Anyway, happy reading!_

"I'm sorry, Mr. Jule, but Dr. Ishida is very busy with another patient at the moment. This young lady will have to wait." Said a nurse, taking off her mask and facing Yzak boldly, knowing that many of the nurses including her would've simply backed off from the platinum blonde, if not given the current situation.

Yzak laid Kyo onto a nearby bed, and slammed his fist into the bedpost, making the bed rattle violently, and also making the nurse before him jump and wince slightly. The platinum blonde knew very well that Kyo would've told him told him to cool down and control himself, but at that point of time, Yzak Jule simply couldn't do that.

There was his girlfriend, Kyo Yamajika, lying unconscious on the bed beside him, and there was a nurse refusing Kyo a doctor. Of course, it wasn't exactly that the nurse was refusing him a doctor, but because the one and only doctor was busy with Athrun Zala.

"Damn you freakin' people! Why can't you leave that bloody asshole of a Zala alone for a moment and come and help someone else who's also desperately in need of medical attention!" hollered Yzak, lunging at the young nurse before him and grabbing her by the collar, before pinning her against the wall on his right.

The nurse gave a glass-shattering scream of terror, flailing her arms and legs in every direction. Dearka sprang into action and pried the young Jule's hands and fingers away from the young woman's collar and neck.

Kyo stirred slightly, her aqua eyes fluttered open slightly. The pain in Kyo's abdomen had worsened, and all that the redheaded girl could hear and see, was a series of muffled sounds and voice, and a blur of shapes and colours.

With a lot of effort and restraint Dearka managed to keep the platinum blonde under control, before releasing him once the copper-tone skinned young man was sure that the young Jule had enough self-control to keep his temper underway.

"This place is run by a bunch of freakin' assholes and airheads! What kind of service is this? What if Kyo's life is at stake, they're just going let her lie there and die!" bellowed Yzak, his voice cracking slightly at the thought of Kyo's frail and limp body lying lifeless in his arms.

"Yzak, get a hold of yourself! Kyo is not going to die, she'll pull through just like last time round!" said Dearka, shifting his gaze to Kyo on the bed, who had fallen unconscious again. However, the words that Dearka was about to say were drowned in his throat at the sight.

The back of Kyo's white pants were stained with blood, and the crimson liquid was leaking and soaking into the bedsheet. Kyo was bleeding internally, and badly too.

Yzak dashed to Kyo's side and took her hand in his own and squeezed it tightly. The attractive girl's hands were icy cold, and her body seemed to be trembling violently as well. All this just sent pang after pang of worry through Yzak.

"Kyo, can you hear me? Please hang in there, I'm begging you! Don't you dare die on me," said Yzak, burying his face into her hand.

Dearka just watched his platinum blonde comrade sit by his beloved, his heart probably aching painfully and filled with despair. The copper-tone skinned young man couldn't help but wonder if Yzak was actually crying or not, as the young Jule was making no sound at all, not even a sniffle or a cough.

Suddenly, Yzak's head shot back up, his breathing become heavy and deep, teeth gritted and eyebrows furrowed furiously. Dearka took a step backward, wondering if Yzak would suddenly spin out of his crouching position and storm off somewhere else, and knocking into him accidentally.

Sure enough, the young Jule catapulted to his feet and turned on heel to face Dearka. The blonde young man, backed away slightly, thinking that the platinum blonde would just take his anger out on him.

"Watch Kyo for me, as much as I don't want to leave her side, I've got to avenge her, I've got someone to deal with." Hissed Yzak, cracking his knuckles menacingly and swerving tightly out of the medical unit.

Before Dearka could question his comrade, the young Jule had already disappeared out of sight, leaving him standing by the bed of his internally bleeding girlfriend. The copper-tone skinned young man whacked himself on the head for not trying to stop Yzak.

The young Jule had sounded vengeful indeed, and Dearka's eyebrow was twitching madly, which gave him a notion that Yzak was after Mia Campbell for revenge, and that was not at all a pleasant thought.

Dearka panicked and began pacing frantically around the room. The nurse whom Yzak had assaulted had just returned to the unit and her face and cheeks were blotchy, indicating that she had been in tears moment before.

The blonde young man couldn't blame the nurse, as Yzak's auscultation had been rather rough, sudden and terrifying. It would've taken a girl with guts like Kyo to actually be able to stand up to Yzak, get attacked and still keep her eyes dry after that.

Dearka came back down to earth, remembering the scenario he was in. Yzak had just stormed out of the ward, leaving Kyo in his care, and that he himself still had no clue what to do next.

Yzak was going after Mia Campbell for revenge, and it was likely that he would do something rash and reckless. Knowing he couldn't leave Kyo alone, Dearka dialed Kira's handphone number and explained everything to the brunette in a jiffy.

"Ok, I'm on my way. Although I really have no clue if I can stop him since Kyo won't be there." Said Kira quickly, hanging up and preparing to move off in search of the young Jule.

"What's up? Who was that and what happened? Has anything untoward happened to Kyo?" asked Lacus curiously, leaving Cagalli's side and walking over to her brunette boyfriend.

Miriallia and Cagalli looked up, both of them displaying anxious and apprehensive expressions on their usually calm and serene facial features, and for some reason, Miriallia seemed to be on the verge of tears.

"Apparently, according to Dearka, Yzak's gone off in search of Mia, probably to avenge Kyo." Said Kira, sighing deeply and tucking his compact handphone back into the pocket of his Bermudas, "Dearka said he's not sure if he's really looking Mia up, but I myself think that the situation is pointing in that direction."

"Even if Yzak did look Mia up, she deserves whatever brutal assaults Yzak might instill upon her. It' because of her and come other parties that we're all in this tangled and sticky mess." Hissed Cagalli, cradling a sleeping Aaron in her arms.

"Cagalli, it's not right to think that way. We must always forgive and forget, even if one's actions seem to be unforgivable." Said Lacus wisely, returning her gaze to Kira once she had finished her statement.

"But if Yzak is going after Mia, you can't stop him by yourself can you, Kira?" said Cagalli, shifting herself into a more comfortable position in her rosewood armchair.

"I'll try," said Kira, trying to hide his uneasiness. Yzak had always been renowned for doing rash and reckless things. In a fit of anger, the platinum blonde could just draw out a dagger and kill someone, then regret his actions in time to come.

"I've got an idea, though it'll take some time. I could head down to the medical unit and replaced Dearka's role in watching after Kyo. Then you and Dearka can go after Yzak. Wouldn't that be better?" suggested Miriallia brightly, looking at Kira and awaiting a reply.

"That's brilliant, let's get a move on then. Lacus stay here with Cagalli," said Kira, accompanying Miriallia out of the bedroom doorway, and displaying his role as an over-protective brother when he told Lacus to stay behind.

Cagalli had been so exhausted after the birth, that she could hardly even walk straight, and therefore, Lacus had offered for Cagalli to remain in her room until after the blonde Orb Princess was ready to move back.

After all, it was good for Cagalli to stay with Lacus, as Lacus seemed to be an expert at baby information, and she could help around with Aaron whenever Cagalli was busy anyway.

It took Miriallia about five minutes to switch places with Dearka down at the medical unit, and by the time Kira and Dearka found Yzak, it was already a tad too late. Although Mia wasn't hurt her room was in an absolute mess, the glass window had shattered, pillows and clothes strewn all over the floor, plus, Mia's dresser-table had shattered.

"You bitch! Always acting like a damsel in distress in front of Athrun, but you show your true colours only when he is not around!" hollered Yzak, aiming a hairbrush at Mia, which Mia dodged and ran to the other end of her bedroom screaming loudly.

"And because of your freakin' bloody actions, we've all had to suffer! Kyo had to suffer, Cagalli too!" snarled Yzak, closing in on Mia as the pink-haired impersonator screamed her lungs out.

"Yzak! Don't do anything rash! If you do, there's a price you'll have to pay!" yelled Dearka, grabbing the young Jule by the shoulders and restraining him as he struggled wildly like an untamed tiger.

Watching Dearka struggled with Yzak, Kira couldn't help but realise how mediocre Cagalli's temperamental tantrums were. If Cagalli were to behave as viciously as Yzak, Kira would've had a black-eye every single day.

Dearka was certainly having a rough time with Yzak, and the duo was now wrestling violently on the floor. Dearka's forehead was bleeding, and Yzak had acquired a cut across his cheek.

"Yzak! Think about it, you may want to avenge Kyo, but d'you think she'd be happy if you did?" said Kira loudly. The platinum blonde froze in his tracks, what Kira said had a point. He wanted to avenge Kyo by hurting Mia, but it was only to soothe his own anger, Kyo wouldn't be pleased to discover that he had hurt someone yet again.

"You'd be letting Kyo down, Yzak, stop it all." Said Kira knowingly, looking sternly at Yzak, whose breathing had returned to normal, and the sides of his face were bathed in his sweat.

Realising it was a perfect opurtunity to flee the scene; Mia darted swiftly out of her bedroom and swerved tightly down the spiral staircase.

Given the route she had taken, Kira assumed that the pink-haired impersonator was making her way to the medical unit.

The platinum blonde young Jule was lying sprawled on his back, beside a panting Dearka, who was still bleeding from the forehead, even as if he had grabbed a clump of tissues and held it over is wound.

"Yzak, your actions were very rash and reckless. What were you thinking? You could've got yourself into deep shit if we hadn't come along to stop you." Said Kira sternly, helping Dearka to his feet before extending a hand out to Yzak, who hesitantly took it.

"I hate Mia Campbell, I _hate her_!" snarled Yzak, slamming his fist into one of the armchairs beside him, and causing one of the chair's wooden arms to crack and fall apart from the chair itself.

"We all do, mate! But you don't have to go to such an extent to get your revenge! Why don't you leave it to the one above! That bimbo will get her retribution one day." Said Dearka, pressing the wound on his forehead in an attempt to stump the blood flow.

"I'm going back to the medical unit," said Yzak heatedly, though the platinum blonde was looking kind of stoned. The young Jule brushed a fleck of dust from his shoulder before heading off and out of the room.

"Gosh! That punk is uncontrollably nuts!" exclaimed Dearka, jumping up and down wildly, hand still pressed against his wound, which was still bleeding profusely.

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"Where's Kyo?" asked Yzak, coming into the medical unit, to find Miriallia standing anxiously by an empty blood-stained bed. Certainly, things had gotten the platinum blonde young Jule flustered enough, and the sudden disappearance of his girlfriend only made matter worse.

"Relax Yzak; she's undergoing surgery right now with Dr. Ishida and his team." Explained Miriallia coolly, stepping toward the young Jule and patting him lightly on the back.

"Finally, does it mean she'll be ok?" asked Yzak, a tinge of worry very obvious in his voice. It came as a shock to the auburn-haired girl to see the platinum blonde young man looking so flustered and worried.

Yzak had always occurred to Miriallia as a perfectly heartless and ungentlemanly guy. Never had Miriallia seen Yzak looking so worried over a person, the young Jule usually couldn't care less about anything else but himself.

"I don't know if she'll be alright Yzak, but we're all praying and hoping for the best." Said Miriallia sighing deeply, and feeling a pang of worry hit her lower gut. Once again, she was overwhelmed with worry for a close friend. First Cagalli, now Kyo, how next?

However, Miriallia dismissed that thought from her mind as not to curse anyone, and although Miriallia never believed in luck or curses, it was just to play safe.

"So that's Mia with Athrun in there, eh?" asked Yzak, folding his arms across his brawny chest and willing himself not to think about Kyo any longer, before broke down into tears.

"Yep, and as usual, she's not letting anyone in to see him. Though I don't know what she has to hide now since we've already exposed her." Said Miriallia, looking at the light blue curtains that were drawn around one of the beds.

"Damn! She has to be ok! She has to live!" exclaimed Yzak, slamming his fists into the handle bar of the nearest bed on his left. The bed rattled violently, and its blanket fell off the bed onto the marble floor.

Yzak, get a grip on yourself! Now that Kyo is weak and needs you most, _you_ are the one who has to be strong for her!" said Miriallia, shaking Yzak gently by the shoulders, as the platinum blonde co-ordinator's body started trembling madly.

"What's going on?" asked Kira, walking into the medical unit, with all of the others trailing along behind. Lacus had helped Dearka dress his wound, and he looked a lot better than before.

"Oh goodness, Dearka! What happened! Are you alright?" squeaked Miriallia, striding hurriedly up to her copper-tone skinned boyfriend and looking at his bandaged forehead.

"It's minor! No need to worry your pretty little head over it," said Dearka, wrapping his arms around Miriallia, and pressing tiny kisses onto her forehead.

The blonde Orb Princess had also come down along, and apparently, she was clutching a lively Aaron in her arms. The baby boy was wrapped in a baby blue blanket decorated with images of the moon and the stars.

The blanket had been stitched and sewn by Lacus, who had surprised Cagalli with it when Aaron was one hour old.

Currently, little Aaron was a little over a day old, and though only being a day old, he looked more like a one month old baby. Maybe, that was how co-ordinator babies were, they grew extremely fast. _(A/N: Looks like Aaron's got more of Athrun's genes, hehe.)_

"He's going to be so handsome when he grows up, just look at his eyes, they're gorgeous!" exclaimed Lacus childishly, cooing at Aaron, who giggled away before sneezing and making the others laugh.

Aaron sneezed one last time, before looking as though he was trying to figure out what had just happened in his body that had made his nose itch and blow out so abruptly.

"Yzak's just having a slight nervous breakdown," said Miriallia, walking up to Cagalli and playing with Aaron, just like what Lacus had been doing.

"Relax pal, we're all just as jumpy as you are, and I'm sure Kyo will be just fine." Said Dearka, approaching Yzak, and throwing an arm around the young Jule's shoulders.

"Sorry mate, about earlier," muttered Yzak softly, thinking back about how he had wounded Dearka during their violent wrestle just moments ago.

"It's alright, what are friends for, man? Right now, don't fuss over me, just worry about Kyo, she's got a bigger place in your heart than I do." Said Dearka cheerily, patting Yzak on the back.

"Wow, are you people having a party here or something? Be considerate won't you? Don't you know that there are patients here who are trying to get some rest?" asked Mia, poking her head from in-between the curtains and staring out at the bunch of teenagers before her.

"Is Athrun awake?" asked Kira sternly, staring at Mia intently, as though trying to read her mind.

The pink-haired impersonator stepped out from the curtains and walked up to Kira.

"No, but even if he was, I wouldn't tell you." Snapped Mia, sucking in her lower lip and glaring at Kira, before her gaze fell upon Cagalli, who was clutching a gurgling Aaron in her arms. "So you've given birth, eh? Hmph, your son looks just like Athrun."

"Can I go and see Athrun? Or are you going to use your big bum to block the way?" questioned Cagalli hotly, insulting Mia for the first time in ages.

Mia looked thoroughly insulted by the blonde girl's remark and pouted slightly. "I'm not going to use my bum to block the way, but bloody right you are in saying that I won't let you see Athrun."

"Why? Do you have something else to hide or accomplish? As far as we all know, we know all your plans and wrong doings? So what else do you have to do exactly?" asked Lacus sarcastically, and for once Mia looked truly frightened.

"I've got much more to accomplish for your information," hissed Mia heatedly, straightening out a fold in her long skirt.

"Well then, whatever it is you're going to do, I'm just letting you know, we'll find out sooner or later." Snapped Kira smartly, snaking an arm around Lacus's waist.

"Now let us in, don't hog Athrun to yourself, you're not the only friend he has." Said Dearka cockily, folding his arms and glaring penetratingly at Mia, who backed away slightly before standing her ground.

"Fat hope, I've got orders to restrict you people from getting within even a metre of him." Snarled Mia, standing directly in front of the curtains.

"Move it!" hollered Kira, and of course Mia was no match for Kira, and she ended up being pushed aside roughly.

The brunette young man wrenched open the curtains to find Athrun Zala lying sleeping on the bed, however, the racket Mia was making had caused the blue-haired co-ordinator to stir.

Kira froze solid in his tracks, looking down at Athrun, whose emerald orbs had fluttered open and were no trying to focus on the people around him.

"Ugh, what happened?" asked Athrun, looking from Kira to Yzak, before his gaze settled on Mia and Lacus.

The blue-haired co-ordinator's eyebrows furrowed and twitched for a number of seconds, "Two Lacus's?"

Realising that Athrun had changed again, and that he had seemed to have forgotten Mia and remembered everything else, Kira interrupted. "This is Mia Campbell; she's the one who landed you in this state."

"Mia… Campbell? What's going on? Cagalli?" said Athrun, his emerald orbs focusing on the pretty blonde Orb Princess before him.

For a moment, Cagalli looked shocked and stunned, but before anything else could happen, Cagalli's frame began shaking madly before she burst into tears thrusting Aaron in Lacus's arms before darting out of the unit in tears.

"Cagalli? Cagalli!" called Kira, taking one last glance at Athrun before dashing out after Cagalli.

Apparently, Lacus wasn't sure if she should tell Athrun the truth about Aaron, and so the pink-haired girl headed back up to her bedroom, and placed the baby boy in his cot before moving back down to the medical unit.

For some reason, Lacus wasn't worried that Aaron would cry and no one would attend to him, as Aaron was such a smiley baby that he smiled at almost everything and never cried unless something was hurting him.

Meanwhile, Kira had a problem finding Cagalli as the blonde girl was a fast sprinter, and by the time Kira followed her in pursuit, she was nowhere to be seen.

"Looking for me?" Came the sound of Cagalli's familiar voice from a nearby corner in-between two corridors.

"Yes, I am, Cagalli. Why'd you run?" asked Kira curiously, settling down on the floor beside his sister.

"Shocked, I guess. I mean, he's suddenly remembered everything. I don't know whether to believe it or not. I mean, how'd he get his memory back? What the hell happened?" whispered Cagalli, her voice still shaky.

"We all don't know, Cagalli, but don't you want to go and see him and refresh him a little?" asked Kira, reaching out and brushing some of her blonde hair from her face.

"I'll see him, but I'm going to make him suffer for a while first." Said Cagalli firmly.

_A/N: Ok, I managed to update by chance, but I don't know when's the next time, so I'm not promising anything, but I will update though. Pls review!_

_**In the next chapter: Cagalli goes to see Athrun but refuses to answer him or speak to him as a punishment. The bunch also receives an explanation from Dr. Ishida on Athrun's condition. Also, Mia has fled back to PLANTs but what's in store for the bunch now? And will Kyo be alright?**_


	19. Silent Treatment

Chapter 19 Silent Treatment

_A/N: Oh good, at least I can update this chapter, I don't know when I'll get my internet connection set up for good, but rest assured I will update! Happy New Year and I hope you enjoy this chapter!_

"Freaks, all of you are!" hissed Mia, pouting and storming back out of the medical unit, probably back to her bedroom, where she would mope about for the rest of the day.

"At least we've gotten rid of that pest! She's a nuisance really!" exclaimed Miriallia, silently cursing Mia with a long lost of profanities in her mind and folding her arms tightly across her chest.

"Well that's one thing we all know, she definitely is a nuisance alright." Said Dearka, shaking his gently, before wincing when the pain in his wound got worse when he furrowed his eyebrows.

"What's going on? Will somebody tell me? Lacus?" pleaded the blue-haired co-ordinator, Athrun, who was sitting up in bed and his mind a complete swirl of thoughts, emotions and expressions.

"It's a long story Athrun, and in the middle of the story, you're the baddie. Maybe you should wait till you're fully well before hearing us out, because you might get a heart attack after hearing it all." Advocated Dearka knowingly, before looking over at Yzak, who was sitting worriedly in a plastic chair.

Just then, Kira swerved tightly into the medical unit, a pissed looking Cagalli trailing along behind. The unit fell silent, as all eyes focused upon the blonde Orb Princess, all eager and waiting to see what her reaction would be.

"Cagalli! What's going on, no one will tell me!" said Athrun, looking up at the blonde girl, and having no clue that everything that had happened, was partially his fault.

Cagalli just stared annoyed at Athrun, refusing to speak a word in his presence or even answer his constant pleas for an explanation to what was going on, and to why she wasn't speaking to him.

"Athrun, before you start screaming your voice hoarse, there's something you should know, and even if Cagalli disapproves of it, you have a right to know." Said Miriallia, looking at Lacus and gesturing that they should tell Athrun about Aaron.

Cagalli looked sternly at Miriallia and Lacus, and widened her eyes ferociously, shaking her head slightly, indicating that she clearly disapproved of it.

"Cagalli, Athrun has a right to know. You can't hide it from his forever, he's bound to find out anyway!" said Kira defensively, moving up beside Cagalli and looking at her firmly.

Cagalli's expression softened slightly, before her eyebrows furrowed in deep thought. Finally, she hesitantly looked up at Miriallia and Lacus before nodding.

"Athrun, you're a father now, your son's name is Aaron, and he's up in his cot right now." Said Lacus, looking over at the blonde girl, before continuing, "Aaron's mother would also be none other than Cagalli, and though I wish to tell you the full story so you can connect and relate to everything, I can't say any more than this."

Athrun stared up at Cagalli before looking at everyone else before sighing. "I can tell that Cagalli's angry with me for some reason, and unless I hear you guys out, I can't mend my ways and make Cagalli happy. I don't want to displease her or any one of you,"

"Cagalli, he has a point there. Seriously, he deserves to know. To make him face the music is a fair punishment, but to keep him from the truth is just unjust." Said Miriallia wisely, sounding like Lacus for the first time.

"Dearka, I think your girlfriend has been spending too much time with Lacus, she's already starting to talk like her." Said Kira jokingly, smiling widely at Miriallia, who pursed her lips.

Lacus giggled at Kira's statement and clung on to his forearm, her head resting sideways on his shoulder.

"Cagalli, ca we bring Aaron down, that was your original plan wasn't it? To let Athrun see Aaron if he awakened." Said Lacus, looking over at Cagalli and hoping that the blonde Orb Princess wouldn't turn down her request.

Sure enough, Cagalli turned to Lacus and shook her head violently. Lacus found Cagalli rather unreasonable, as after all, nothing would change the fact that Athrun was Aaron's father.

"Cagalli, don't be so unreasonable! You're being too harsh on Athrun! It's not all his fault that everything happened, it was that cunning Mia!" exclaimed Kira fiercely, glaring at Cagalli heatedly.

Cagalli knew very well that Kira was becoming infuriated, and she certainly didn't want to annoy anyone but Athrun, that is. Yes, she was very evil, very evil indeed, making someone she loved so dearly suffer as a result of payback.

"WHAT'S GOING ON? CAGLLI'S ANGRY WITH ME AND NEXT I FIND OUT I HAVE A SON, WHAT'S NEXT? I KILLED SOMEONE?" hollered Athrun, falling back onto the support of his pillow and trying to catch his breath.

Certainly, the blue-haired charming co-ordinator had mustered all his energy and courage just to get everyone's attention, and Lacus certainly thought that her former fiancé deserved to know the truth.

"That does it, whether or not you guys approve of Athrun knowing the truth, I can't bear to see him being kept in the dark! Keeping the truth from him is a totally immature and childish action!" barked Lacus hotly, looking angrily from Cagalli to Dearka.

Lacus's sudden outburst had been so unexpected, that the pink-haired girl had even gotten the attention of a heavy-hearted Yzak, whom before that was busy pining silently for Kyo.

Everyone was silent, and even when Lacus begun explaining everything to Athrun, not even Cagalli lifted a finger to stop her. The pink-haired girl rambled on and on, explaining everything in full detail, not that she was rambling on about nonsensical things, but Kira and the others just felt that she was dragging her explanation a little too long.

By the time Lacus had finished, Dearka had cheekily fallen asleep in a nearby plastic chair and Cagalli and Kira looked rather dazed and bored. However, Athrun's facial features held a different expression.

The charming blue-haired young man was looking rather petrified, stoned and slightly horrified. Turning to Cagalli he said, "I am so sorry, Cagalli. I didn't mean to really, I had no idea."

For once, Cagalli spoke. "Yeah, of course you didn't know, you're just an insolent jerk!" she said, backstabbing him hard.

However, before Athrun could say anything to defend himself, Dr. Ishida swerved out of the operating theatre. A few nurses trailing along behind, pushing an unconscious Kyo out on a stretcher.

"Kyo, Dr. Ishida how is she?" asked Miriallia, beating Yzak in being the first one to question the doctor about Kyo's condition.

"Well, she's weak, very weak. Although she didn't lose a lot of blood, one of her internal organs seems to have ruptured, and although I've stitched her up nicely, I don't know how she'll fare from now on." Said Dr. Ishida, looking apprehensively at Yzak who looked horrorstruck.

"She'll be ok, right?" asked Yzak, not looking at Dr. Ishida, but instead, staring sideways at the floor.

"I'm not sure right now. I'm sorry, Yzak." Said Dr. Ishida, patting Yzak on the shoulder before proceeding on to Athrun, and leaving Yzak alone with Kyo.

The others' attention returned to Athrun, and Lacus was the first to ask about Athrun. I swear that if Cagalli wasn't so pissed with Athrun, she'd have been the first to ask.

"Basically, all of you should be thankful, as I think Athrun's recovery was a pure miracle. Apparently, when he knocked his head again, the knock seemed to have triggered the clot in his brain to disperse, so that the passage leading to the part of his brain which operates his memory system, became clear again." Explained Dr. Ishida smiling down at Athrun, who just grinned back.

"Yahoo!" exclaimed Dearka, who had woken up from his little snooze about a minute ago.

"Also, I want to congratulate you, Miss Cagalli, on having a baby boy." Said Dr. Ishida, reaching out to shake a hesitant Cagalli's hand. The blonde girl pulled back sharply as soon as the doctor released his grip on her hand.

Certainly, Cagalli found it very weird to find Dr. Ishida shaking her hand and congratulating her, because as far as she knew, Dr. Ishida never liked the idea of teenage pregnancies of teenage mothers, and Cagalli had been through all that.

The only reason Dr. Ishida was probably congratulating her was because he was doing it out of respect, as Cagalli was the Orb Princess.

"Athrun, no oily or spicy foods for the next two weeks, which means that you guys aren't allowed to be sneaking cafeteria food up to him here, is that clear?" questioned Dr. Ishida, and although the others agreed promptly, it didn't really matter.

Dr. Ishida was hardly ever around in the medical unit, and the nurses were too busy bustling around to notice that one of their patients was eating forbidden food.

With that, the senior doctor swerved out of sight, past a sliding door, which probably led to his office.

"I'll go and get Aaron," said Miriallia, offering to do the task of climbing two flights of stairs and bring the jovial little baby boy back down.

However, before Miriallia could proceed, Cagalli stopped her. Fearing Cagalli might stop anyone from bringing the baby down to see his father, Kira called out the blonde Orb Princess's name certainly and furrowed his eyebrows.

Cagalli glared back before hesitantly replying, "I'll get him,"

Athrun just sighed in his bed, feeling a little blue that Cagalli wasn't talking to him. No doubt he felt hurt, but he couldn't possibly take Cagalli on while he was still recovering, he'd be risking another limb or two. His main focus now was on getting well, and if by then, the blonde girl was still giving him the silent treatment, he'd take action and confront her.

"Athrun, don't worry, she'll cool off someday. She won't stay mad at you forever; she's just giving you the cold shoulder because she's pissed so don't fuss over it." Said Kira knowingly, patting Athrun gently on the shoulder.

I'm really lost right now, so I guess I'll need some peace and quiet later to think some things over." Said Athrun sighing, and scratching his forearm, before looking down at his bedcovers.

"Sure thing, mate. You'll have company here anyway, Kyo's here as well, apparently she had a little mishap with Mia Campbell. You remember who Kyo is, don't you?" asked Dearka, looking at the puzzled look on the blue-haired co-ordinator's face.

"Sure I do, I hope she's alright." Said Athrun, propping himself higher up onto his pillow, and folding his arms across his brawny chest.

"You know, you can't blame Cagalli for being mad at you, you should've seen yourself, brutal, violent, cold-hearted." Said Lacus shuddering at the thought, "Cagalli cried day and night, she was probably hurting to the brink of insanity."

Athrun sighed before shifting his gaze to his bedcovers and fiddling with his fingers. No doubt, he still felt confused, as he remembered his past and whatever that had happened with Mia, he remembered every single thing.

Of course, he had not told the others this yet, but at the moment, he was racking his brains out trying to piece it all together. The co-ordinator with midnight blue hair sat silently on the medical unit bed, knowing that he had to patch up with Cagalli no matter what, and that he had to figure everything out from head to toe.

Athrun remembered what Mia had told him about Cagalli and the others, all the lies and terrible things she had made and forced him to believe. His mind was so crammed that every single piece of information was flying around in his conscience, each wanting to get the better of him.

Of course, Athrun could still differentiate between Mia's lies and the others' true personalities, but from time to time, he would still get confused.

"Athrun, even though you can't blame my sister, we all want you to know that you can't blame yourself either. Mia swindled you into whatever you did, it's not entirely your fault." Said Kira, patting Athrun lightly on the back seeing the broody expression on the blue-haired co-ordinator's face.

"I know, I'm just so messed up right now. I wish all this had never happened, I wish I hadn't met any of you, except for Yzak and Dearka whom I met at PLANTs. By the way, where're morgue and Andy, they were here weren't they?" questioned Athrun, looking around for any sign of the coffee man and the brunette lady.

"Oh they're… hang on a sec! How come you remember Murrue and Andy? They didn't appear at all in your presence since you woke up!" exclaimed Dearka, looking stunned at Athrun, who merely sighed sadly.

"I didn't tell you guys, but I can still remember everything else about Mia, so of course I know Murrue and Andy are here." Said Athrun softly, still feeling rather blue and heartbroken.

Cagalli waked slowly into the medical unit, attracting the attention of everyone else, especially Athrun who stared curiously and eagerly at the bundle swaddled in her arms.

Cagalli glared hatefully at Athrun, which made him retract his gaze from both her and her baby. The blue-haired co-ordinator just looked away to the side, and shut his eyes, feeling the warm tears spread evenly under his eyelids.

"Cagalli stop doing this to him! You can't blame him entirely!" exclaimed Miriallia, going up to Cagalli and staring knowingly at the blonde girl, who simply snorted and furrowed her eyebrows in annoyance.

"Leave her be, I deserve it for my actions anyway." Athrun said, still not paying attention to anyone.

Cagalli recognized that tone and quaver in his voice, he was going to cry sooner or later. He had used that tone when she first took him in one of those nights when he told her about his mother dying on Junius 7.

Though Cagalli hated seeing Athrun in this pitiful state, she hated him just as much for whatever he had done to her before. No doubt she knew perfectly well that Athrun was not entirely to blame, but she still harbored anger for him.

"Cagalli go on, let Athrun see the baby." Said Lacus encouragingly, urging Cagalli to let Athrun hold his flesh and blood son for a moment.

Cagalli tightened her grip on Aaron, making the baby squirm slightly before reaching out with both arms to play with the necklace that _Athrun gave her_.

Athrun's eyes lit up at the sight, he had spend days carving the pendant out, and the chain was made out of pure white-gold. However, Cagalli caught his gaze and he quickly turned away.

"Cagalli Yula Athha, Princess of Orb and mother of Aaron Zala! Stop shunning Athrun!" hissed Kira, extending his sentence by stating out Cagalli's titles and statuses.

Cagalli never failed to become annoyed each time anyone did this to her, but this time she held her temper in. Kira was right; she shouldn't be shunning Athrun, especially when he needed her love most now.

"Can't you think of a less harsh way to punish him?" asked Miriallia, looking at Cagalli hopefully, as she felt the extreme hurt that Athrun was probably experiencing now.

"Cagalli, you know very well how it felt when Athrun was never there for you even if he could've been. It was terrible, we were all there with you; we knew how you felt as we all felt it too. Don't put Athrun through that as well," pleaded Lacus, wanting to get down on her knees, only to find that Cagalli stopped her.

The blonde Orb Princess sighed deeply, before looking up at Athrun, who was still looking away from her.

"Alright, fine! I'll lay off a bit, but he will still have to face the music! I'll talk to him as per normal, but in exchange, Athrun'll have to stay away from both Aaron and I." hissed Cagalli, glaring at Athrun.

The co-ordinator with midnight blue hair had lightened his expression slightly at the beginning of his little judgment; however, once the blonde ended her statement, his face had fallen at least a notch from what it was earlier on.

There was a pregnant silence lurking in all four corners of the unit, even Yzak, who was accompanying Kyo in the unit beside Athrun, didn't seem to be making anymore noise. As though he could understand the situation, even little Aaron had stopped his little gurgling noises.

"Cagalli, that's still a little harsh. After all, Aaron is Athrun's son, and he's so adorable I don't think anyone could've resisted giving him a squeeze." Contradicted Miriallia softly, knowing that even though she had voiced out her opinion, nothing would change the blonde Orb Princess's mind now.

"Take it or leave it," snapped Cagalli arrogantly, propping Aaron higher up in her arms. The little baby rested his head on his mother's neck, and focused his little emerald orbs on Athrun, and for some reason his eyes welled up with tears.

"Cagalli, Aaron looks like he's going to cry, you sure you're not wearing anything on your wrist that's poking him?" asked Lacus, looking at the solemn and teary-eyed look on the adorable baby's face.

"No, I'm not even wearing my watch. Maybe he's hungry again, but I did feed him before I came back down here." Said Cagalli, gently patting Aaron's small back in a rhythmic manner and rocked him slowly.

The little baby suddenly burst into a fit of tears, though he wasn't bawling or crying loudly, he was still fussing and rubbing his eyes with clenched little fists as pearly tears rolled down his rosy cheeks.

Aaron outstretched his arms toward Athrun, trying to wriggle out of Cagalli's arms and toward his father. Although Aaron was crying, it was kind of cute seeing him try to wriggle his way free of his mother's loving arms, not knowing that there was at least a metre's drop to the floor below him if he succeeded in wriggling free.

"I think he wants Athrun to hold him," said Kira, trying to interpret the young co-ordinator's little actions, which were quite unclear, as being a baby, he still had no proper control over his limbs.

"And I don't think you should stop Aaron," said Lacus unyieldingly, "Go on, pass him over. I'm sure you don't want Aaron to start bawling like some babies do."

Cagalli hesitated slightly, before reaching out to Athrun, as she held Aaron under his arms, letting his tiny feet, which were kept warm in his jumper, kick about.

As Athrun took Aaron from Cagalli, there was a slight brush against his and Cagalli's skin, and how he longed to hold the blonde in his arms again and love her like he used to. Of course, he still loved her just as much, or even more, but due to Cagalli's punishment, he'd have to stay away from both her and Aaron.

The only reason Athrun was holding Aaron now was because the baby wanted him to.

Athrun placed Aaron on his lap, cradling him gently and supporting his back and neck. The baby boy rested his head on his father's chest and snuggled in closer, making little baby sounds. The sounds babies made when they were comforted and contented.

Aaron's little hands had clasped onto Athrun's shirt, and he didn't seem keen on letting go, much less be wrenched away from his source of comfort, which his mother was thinking of doing just moments from now.

Just then, Uzumi Nara Athha came walking in briskly with great strides, his head held high, into the medical unit. He seemed serious, and the others could only assume he had urgent news to deliver.

The bunch greeted the Lion of Or politely, their tone full of warmth and respect. Even Yzak had come out of Kyo's unit to pay his respects to the Lion of Orb.

"Father, what's going on? You rarely ever come looking for us," said Cagalli, sounding slightly worried, seeing the serious and stern look on her father's face. The blonde girl knew very well, that if Lord Uzumi ever looked her up, his message was usually very important.

"Mia Campbell has fled from Orb. I was planning to punish her severely for her actions, but it seems one of my men saw her entering a space shuttle that was headed for PLANTs minutes ago." Informed Lord Uzumi, looking from Cagalli to Athrun, who was sitting on the medical unit bed with a little Aaron, who seemed to be dozing off again.

"Damn it, that little female rascal got away? What do we do now?" asked Dearka, punching his fist into the movable table beside Athrun's bed, which was usually used to put the patient's foodstuffs on.

"Simple, we don't do anything." Said Lacus, looking stern and wise at the same time. The others were shocked by her statement. Even Kira was staring at Lacus unbelievingly. "I know you're thinking that after everything she's done, how could we let her get away? But think of it this way, why would we want to put ourselves through all the trouble again, going to PLANTs to look for her?"

"But you know she's working for Chairman Zala, she'll deliver every single piece of information she's managed fork out from here, to him! Who knows how that pile of shit would react?" exclaimed Dearka, flinging his arms up in the air and panicking.

"Dearka, stop all of this nonsensical behaviour and zip it!" snapped Miriallia heatedly, making the copper-tone skinned blonde young man shut up the very instant she spoke.

"Miss Clyne is right. Don't go after that tattle-tale. Leave her be, we'll just have to be on the alert for anything that is to be coming our way," advocated Lord Uzumi wisely.

Meanwhile, Yzak was still sitting by Kyo's side, awaiting her revival. The platinum blonde young Jule could feel his stomach growling, though his anxiety covered it all.

"Kyo, you've got to wake up, I'll kill myself if you don't." whispered Yzak softly, stroking his girlfriend's cold but soft cheek.

The young Jule knew very well that even though he had never been very affectionate to Kyo, he still loved her deeply, and she was like his life, without her he'd be worse than dead.

Yzak clutched her hand within his own, and rested his forehead on it, and for some reason and to his delight, he felt Kyo flex her fingers…

_A/N: Hurray! I finally am able to update! I have internet access now, though I may be updating slower than usual since I have just moved to New Zealand and I have to help with the house! Thanks to all my reviewers who have supported me all the way and have wished me good luck with my migration! Pls review!_

**_In the next chapter: Athrun still has to remain in hospital, and has Cagalli, Kira and Lacus to accompany him. Though Cagalli said Athrun would have to stay away from her and Aaron, she still couldn't find the guts to move out of the medical unit. Athrun also has a frightening encounter with three trainee nurses. Dearka and Miriallia finally go out on a proper date for dinner, but find themselves thrown into a funny restaurant where funny things happen. Also Mia Campbell arrives back at PLANTs, and arranges a meeting with Chairman Patrick Zala. _**


	20. Fan Girl Paparazzi

Chapter 20 Fan Girl Paparazzi

_A/N: Heya, some of my reviewers say I'm one of the fastest updaters they've seen, is that true? I know that for my first fanfic, I used to update every other day without fail, haha! But my chapters were a lot shorter then, so of course I updated quicker. Anyway, thank you to all those who have been reviewing constantly and encouraging me! Happy reading! _

"You don't really have to stay here to accompany me. I'm pretty much alright on my own." Said Athrun, grinning widely at the blonde, the brunette young man and his former fiancée, who were standing by his bed and chatting with him.

"Don't be silly, Athrun. We can't afford to leave you alone again, I mean after all that's happened, I think we're all scarred for life." Sighed Lacus willfully, before shifting her gaze to the sleeping baby boy who was lying cradled in Athrun's arms and looking contented.

Lacus smiled at a little Aaron. He was just such an endearing little tot. Certainly, he resembled much of Athrun when the latter was young. Handsome, charming, delightful and charismatic, was what any girl would've described Athrun to be.

Lacus had to admit, she was very lucky to have had been engaged to such a charming and gentlemanly young man like Athrun. Even so, she never really thought of him as more than a very good friend. Likewise, Athrun had only considered Lacus as a very good companion, and nothing more.

The pink-haired girl grinned warmly at the little baby sleeping in his father's arms. She could imagine herself having a few kids of her own once she found Mr. Right, and for some reason, she just felt that Kira was perfect for the position of her Mr. Right.

"Seriously, I'll be fine if you leave me here. I've got the nurses and Dr. Ishida monitoring me twenty-four seven, so I'm practically very secure here." Reassured Athrun, planting a soft kiss on Aaron's soft head, as the little baby shifted slightly in the warm and secure arms of his father.

"Yeah right, no way am I going to leave this place without taking my son along, and I wouldn't want to wake him up by wrenching off you either." Hissed Cagalli, apparently still very annoyed, as she folded her arms tightly across her bosom.

"Are you sure, Cagalli? Because knowing you the way I do, you wouldn't have cared less about anything at all, and you would've just taken Aaron and left. So are you sure you're not just using Aaron as an excuse to stay here?" mocked Kira teasingly, inching closer to his sister and sniggering playfully.

"Am not!" snapped Cagalli heatedly, waving her fist in Kira's direction and scowling at her twin brother, who was laughing away like a mad man.

Athrun's expression fell slightly. His stomach held a sinking feeling, knowing that Cagalli was still bent on not acknowledging him, and who knew how long she'd remain in this ignorant state?

"Where's Dearka?" asked Yzak out of the blue, poking his head out from Kyo's unit, and looking around.

"I think he went out with Mirre," replied Lacus sweetly, before the platinum blonde sighed and returned to Kyo's unit.

"_Mr. Zala_," Came a high-pitched and squeaky girl's voice from the end of Athrun's bed.

Everyone turned to face the person from whom the voice erupted from. Even Aaron was aroused from the high-pitched glass-shattering sound.

The noise had come from a young nurse, who had her uniform so tight and short that Athrun swore if she bent down to pick something up, her underwear would've been clearly visible under her skirt.

The nurse was clearly very vain, as she was so caked up with stockings, blusher, lots of lipstick and eye shadow and curled black eyelashes as long as a camel's. She was batting her eyelids constantly at Athrun, who had goose bumps forming on his skin already.

Without warning she jumped out at Athrun and threw her arms around him giggling and squealing away like a mad fan girl, and in fact, she was a fan girl, one of Athrun's fan girls.

The moment Cagalli had reached to retrieve Aaron from being squashed in-between the nurse and Athrun; it was as though the baby had literally jumped into his mother's arms being so startled and afraid.

"Oh my _goodness_! I can't believe I've finally met you! I'm probably your biggest fan!" squealed the young nurse kissing Athrun all over on the head, and Athrun being so polite, tried very hard not to squirm and show his discomfort.

Kira, Lacus and Cagalli were staring dumbstruck at what they were seeing before their very eyes, and the sight only made Cagalli even more annoyed. The young man she loved was being kissed and hugged all over by a total crazy female stranger, and he wasn't even trying to stop her!

"Oh my _gosh_! ATHRUN ZALA! Hey Mandy, come over her, now! Athrun's really here! AAAAAAAH!" squealed a second nurse, looking just as made up as the first, and within seconds, a third nurse looking like a geisha, had appeared.

Before Athrun could say or do anything, he was engulfed in more hugs and showered with more sloppy and kisses that were smudged with lipstick.

"Ooooooh! This must be his son, although I didn't read anywhere about him having a girlfriend or a son! He's so cute!" squealed the nurse called Mandy, tugging at Aaron's cheeks, and ignoring the baby's cries of protest.

Cagalli finally wrenched Aaron away from Mandy, and soothed him as she glared ferociously at the nurse, who backed off slightly before giggling away.

"Ok, this shall be published at PLANTs sooner or later, Athrun Zala has a dumb blonde for a girlfriend and has a perfectly angelic son, who's a splitting image of him!" exclaimed another nurse, jumping around madly.

The other two nurses had now crowded around Cagalli, and were bombarding her with questions, which the blonde Orb Princess simply refused to answer, and was busy trying to protect her son from the nurses' slobbery kisses.

"Leave them alone!" barked Athrun fiercely, after wiping all the kiss marks off his face with a piece of tissue paper.

The three nurses ceased in their actions and stared at him shocked and appalled by his sudden outburst.

"What's going on? Where did you three come from and how is it that you know me?" asked Athrun hotly, staring furiously at the three petite and big bosomed girls, who were looking at him lustfully, to Cagalli's silent disgust.

"Didn't you know? You've got a huge fan base back at PLANTs, and your father approves of it! We're the fan bases's leaders!" explained one of the girls excitedly, giggling away as she blew a kiss at Aaron, which Cagalli quickly avoided.

Athrun's jaw dropped, "What? Just what is my father doing as the Chairman of PLANTs? He certainly isn't doing a very good job is he? Get out! All three of you, and tell those people who have joined the fan base to disperse!"

The three nurses sighed and moved off into the staffroom, swaying their big bums and sashaying at their own pace back to their assigned venues.

"What was that all about! You asshole, you didn't even stop them from touching you all over, and d'you know what kind of questions they were asking me? You're such a bastard!" hissed Cagalli hotly, storming out of the ward, Aaron, sitting quietly in her arms.

"Damn it!" yelled Athrun, slamming his fist into his bedside table, making the lamp rattle violently. There were tears welling up in his eyes, as the anger swelled within him, he made Cagalli mad again.

"Athrun, calm down, she'll be alright." Said Lacus coolly, walking up to Athrun and placing a warm hand on her shoulder.

"She'll be alright, but I won't! I want her back! I don't want her ignoring me or behaving coldly towards me anymore! It's hurting me! Even though I feel like crying I won't because I don't want to!" hollered Athrun, his eyes swimming in tears.

"It's ok to cry, that's what Lacus told me once. You'll feel better after that, just drown all your sorrows in your tears." Said Kira meaningfully, looking at his sister's beloved and smiling.

"What's the point of doing that if the one you love isn't there to lend you a shoulder to cry on?" sobbed Athrun, finally breaking down and burying his head into his pillow and bursting into a fit of tears.

Lacus could only watch her former fiancé sadly, as she leant her shoulder on Kira's shoulder and sighed deeply.

Meanwhile outside, Cagalli was sitting in the waiting area, crying herself after hearing each and every single one of Athrun's sorrowful words. Her tears fell from her eyes hitting Aaron's little head, urging the baby boy to reach up and use his hand to wipe away his mother's tears.

Cagalli looked down at her precious son, his emerald eyes staring back up at her as he touched her face wiping away her tears. Aaron reminded Cagalli so much of Athrun, those emerald eyes and his soft blue hair.

The blonde girl thought back of the first time she lay in Athrun's arms, as he cuddled her close and their bodies joined as one, and the beautiful result of that night was the perfect baby boy that lay cradled in Cagalli's arms right now.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Where d'you want to go for dinner? There's a whole row of shops from here onwards, and the food is simply scrumptious." Said Dearka, swerving tightly into one of the parking lots nearby town. The copper-tone skinned blonde had rented a car from Orb especially for his little date with Miriallia.

"To be truthful, I'm not sure. You seem to know this area better than I do, so why don't you choose?" advocated Miriallia sweetly, grinning at her lean and handsome boyfriend, who shrugged and agreed.

"Well personally, I like that Italian restaurant just round the corner from here. The cheesy dishes are deliciously rich," said Dearka excitedly, taking Miriallia's hand and dragging her off as the auburn-haired girl giggled away.

The duo entered the homely and warmly-lit restaurant, which had coloured glass windows and ceiling lights, which hung from the sloped ceiling. There weren't many people in the restaurant, thought those that were there, who dressed rather weirdly.

Unusually big sized hats, long striped socks, heavy make-up like a clown's and the ladies were very scantily dressed. Dearka was trying very hard not to stare, and if he was to be truthful, he had never entered this town or this restaurant. In fact, this was his first time to Orb, as he was from PLANTs, so how could be possibly be accustomed to this area.

"Dearka honey, are you sure you eat here often? You may have taken a wrong turn and entered the wrong restaurant," said Miriallia apprehensively, looking and judging by the sort of people that came to eat here, she didn't feel very comfortable.

Dirty and perverse stares were coming at her from all directions from both young and old lads, some puffing pipes and others smoking tobacco. All had mustaches of goatees, and laughed and talked loudly, drinking and playing cars to entertain themselves.

"I come here all the time, don't worry, I'll protect you no matter what." Said Dearka, trying to sound reassuring instead of uneasy.

"Alright then, we'll sit here and maybe place out orders." Said Miriallia, tugging at Dearka's forearm and sitting down carefully at a table for two.

Immediately, a waitress with a painted face like a geisha's attended to them. She had a strong Italian accent and was barely understandable, and that was when Miriallia realized that Dearka spoke Italian, to Miriallia's complete surprise.

Dearka placed an order for a set meal for two, which Miriallia quickly agreed to, as even though being a girl, she wasn't the fussy type.

"You speak Italian? You never told me!" said Miriallia laughing, and playfully hitting Dearka on the arm, as he blocked off the rest of her playful blows with both arms.

"Yeah, you never asked. I keep these sort of things to myself," said Dearka snappily, catching Miriallia's hand as she aimed a punch at him. The blonde young man bit her playfully, causing the auburn-haired girl to pull back sharply and rub her forearm, still laughing away.

It wasn't long before dinner was served. There was a layout of macaroni and cheese, some weird dish with salami slices and parsley, and some drinks, which Miriallia declined to, take even a sip of as they looked toxic.

"Mmm, the cheese is good," said Miriallia smacking her lips as she took a bite out of her food.

Dearka was watching his girlfriend intently, just enjoying the sight of her sitting before him. Her movements were beautiful, _she_ was beautiful. Her auburn hair just bounced up every time she moved her head.

Her olive-green eyes just shone under the warm light of the restaurant, and she seemed to be having a good time so far, to Dearka's relief.

It was a number of seconds before Dearka realized that Miriallia had been constantly calling out his name when she realized he was staring at her and grinning naughtily. It was obvious that the tanned blonde had been thinking dirty thoughts, as is grin had been getting naughtier and naughtier.

Dearka blushed deeply after coming back to reality. "Sorry, I was dreaming."

"Of what? You were smiling so cheekily at me I was getting the goose bumps." Asked Miriallia, giggling at the reddened shade on Dearka's tanned cheeks.

The copper-tone skinned young man was ever so handsome to her. In fact, it was as though all co-ordinator young men had the charm and the charisma. Athrun, Dearka, even Yzak. Although the young Jule had always pulled a long face, he was handsome in his own ways; that was probably why Kyo was head over heels in love with him.

Even Kira Yamato was babyishly handsome. The brunette had always had a boyish face that never failed to enhance his features.

"I was just dreaming of something," said Dearka, trying to wriggle his way out of the sticky situation he was caught in. He certainly didn't want to tell Mirre that he was actually dreaming of bedding her one day and making her the happiest woman on Earth and on PLANTs.

"What were you dreaming of? Unless it was something illegal, you've got nothing to hide." Said Miriallia cheekily, knowing somehow that he had been thinking of something dirty, though she couldn't blame him anyhow, he was a guy after all.

"It' really nothing; and I'd rather not talk about it." Said Dearka awkwardly, smiling at Milly before finally tucking into his dinner. However, before the spoon could reach Dearka's lips, the duo experienced something very weird.

An avalanche of cream puffs, sauces and cakes were hurtled at them from the people around them. Dearka catapulted to his feet and jumped out of his table, dragging a screaming Miriallia along. The food attacks didn't stop even as they ran out of the restaurant, there were others waiting in a long line outside as well.

The duo ran along the street, towards a nearby building which was clear of any people at all. Dearka had received a few creams puffs in the face, and Mirre had been hit twice by a series of fruit purees.

They finally stopped behind a brick wall, panting hard as they leant backwards on the wall, clearing the mess off their faces and clothes. To Dearka's surprise, Miriallia was not looking shocked or frightened, but she was laughing away.

"That was… fun… d'you always go through… this?" asked Mirre, turning to Dearka and falling into his chest, still trying to catch her breath.

"Umm, actually Mirre, to be truthful, I've never even been here." Confessed Dearka, feeling rather foolish and ashamed of himself, which was what anyone in his shoes would've felt.

Miriallia just laughed even more, "You silly boy,"

Dearka was just glad that Miriallia wasn't angry or disappointed in him or anything else. In fact, he found it puzzling that she actually enjoyed herself.

"I'm going to the ladies," said Miriallia, finding a sign that pointed the direction to the toilet.

Dearka followed Miriallia all the way; afraid that something might happen again, he followed, and followed and followed. That was when he heard a series of piercing screams, and realized he had followed Mirre right into the ladies' toilet.

The tanned blonde quickly darted out, half deafened by the girls' glass-shattering screams.

When Miriallia came back out, she had washed all the foodstuff off herself, and only had a few spots on her blouse from the food stains.

"Shall we head back?" asked Dearka, looking rather foolish and tired.

"Sure thing," said Dearka, holding her boyfriends hand as they strolled back to their rented car, making sure that they didn't pass the mob of weird people again or that Italian restaurant.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"What's up people?" asked Andrew Wattfeld, striding head held high into the medical unit and coming in to visit their comrade, Athrun Zala, who was still being accompanied by Kira and Lacus.

"Athrun! It's so good to see you awake and alive again! We rushed back from the city as soon as Kira called us earlier," said Murrue happily, going up to Athrun and giving him a tight and friendly bear hug.

"It's good to see you guys too, I expect everything's alright back up at PLANTs before you left?" asked Athrun curiously, eagerly awaiting an answer from Murrue or Andy.

"Yep, everything was okey dokey, hokey pokey!" replied Andrew jovially, holding a can of iced cappuccino as usual.

"Oh stop being so childish! He was asking you a serious question in a stern tone!" exclaimed Murrue, nudging Andy hard in the ribs, as the brunette man jerked himself away, rubbing his side.

"Did you see Cagalli anywhere when you came back?" asked Kira, sounding a little worried for his sister.

It had been close to two hours and his blonde sister, Cagalli Yula Athha, had not shown herself since. Although Kira assumed that Cagalli was probably up in Lacus's room and playing with Aaron in his cot, when she was angry, she was often caught trying to do something rash.

"Nope, what about her? Did something happen?" asked Murrue cautiously, looking at Lacus, Kira and Athrun, waiting to hear something relieving instead of something that would spell the word 'trouble' in her mind.

Lacus sighed deeply before looking over at Athrun, who had his head tilted downwards, as he fiddled with his bed covers.

"As Kira has explained to you earlier over the phone, Cagalli is still giving Athrun the cold shoulder, and apparently, he's not dealing very well with it. She isn't hurting him, she's killing him slowly." Whispered Lacus, inching closer to Murrue and Andy.

"Oh dear, this is bad," said Andy shaking his head slowly, and taking a sip of his coffee, and smacking his lips.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Come in," called the Chairman of PLANTs, Patrick Zala, eagerly welcoming in his loyal spy. Even though the senior Zala sounded eager, warm and welcoming, he had other plans in mind.

The crap of a girl had failed her little task of bringing his son, Athrun Zala, back to PLANTs after getting him to assassinate the Orb Princess. Chairman Zala's anger was already raging enough after hearing that his son had fallen in love with his target instead of killing her, and now this.

"Good evening, Chairman Zala," greeted Mia respectfully, obeying the chairman's gestures of inviting her in taking a seat before his desk before they engaged in discussion.

"Good evening, Miss Campbell. I am eager to hear the information you re going to hand over to me," began the senior Zala, "However, I am deeply disappointed in the failure of your mission."

Patrick Zala's ending statement clearly sent a knife of horror through Mia, making her feel as though her body from her legs upwards were turning into solid ice, and that even her heart was about to freeze in its daily duties of pumping blood through her body.

"I am truly sorry, sir, I did not mean to come back after failing my task. I admit I had too much pride and was over-confident, I seek your forgiveness sir." Pleaded Mia softly, her voice shaking uncontrollably.

"How sweet your plea sounds to me, however, you will pay dearly for your failure." Hissed Patrick, reaching forward and ceasing the girl's face, and stroking her chin and cheeks. "Although I won't kill you, I'll see to it personally that you're to be made my personal slave and concubine, in other words."

Mia froze, petrified in her throughts and movements. No, the chairman was going to make use of her to satisfy himself, no!

"Scared, are you? You should be," snarled the chairman, laughing evilly to himself. "At last I've gotten rid of that good for nothing son of mine, and my lovely dear wife? Well, sad to say, she got rid of herself! Blowing up together with Junius 7!"

The chairman laughed cruelly, his echoing laughter bouncing off the walls of his office, and finally, Mia wondered how she had come to start working for a maniac like him.

Mia was forced to dish out every single piece of information she had, and although she tried not too give out too much information, Chairman Zala always knew she had more to tell.

"Good girl, you've done well in getting information. Now I can strart plotting a plan, and get rid of the entire bunch of those pests, especially that freak of a baby my son calls his own." Hissed Patrick, scraping his nails across his desk. "That baby must be iradicated, he's a mix of both co-ordinator and natural blood, he will show the universe that co-ordinators and naturals can live in peace, and I will never let that happen!"

Meanwhile, back at Orb, Cagalli sits in Lacus's room, cradling a suckling Aaron in her arms, as his tiny fingers scraped against the skin of her breast. The little blue-haired baby was certainly growing fast, and very fast indeed, it had been a mere day and he looked fatter already.

"Silly boy, always drinking so much milk. I'm getting dehydrated already because all the water I drink goes into making breastmilk, which you drink like water running from a tap. No wonder you're getting fat already." Teased Cagalli, nipping at Aaron's cheeks, as he stopped suckling for a moment to smile and giggle slightly.

Cagalli's baby son continued with his much liked suckling as his mother gazed lovingly down at him. Aaron was such a darling, peachy skin just like Cagalli's, soft blue hair and emerald eyes, Athrun's eyes.

Aaron resembled so much of Athrun, except that Athrun's eyebrows were a little thicker. It was only then that Cagalli realised how much Athrun meant to her in her life, he meant everything to her.

There he was lying unable to go anywhere in the medical unit, pining for her company, and here she was lying somewhere else and ignoring him.

"Well done, Cagalli, go ahead and kill him off while he's trying to be a perfect boyfriend and father of your son." Cagalli thought to herself, as she shifted Aaron off her onto the bed, once he had finished his feed.

The blonde mother wiped her son's mouth clean and unbuttoned his jumper, since he was due for a nappy change and maybe a little wipe-down.

Cagalli undid Aaron diaper, and… PSSSST! She received a squirt of pee right in her face. Aaron giggled slightly kicking his legs about as Cagalli wiped her face clean with her sleeve, and stared at him annoyed.

However, her face broke into a smile when she remembered the night when something similar had happened with her and Athrun, when she had pulled down his pants before sleeping with him.

Cagalli had pulled down Athrun's boxers and had received a squirt of fluid right from him in her face. _(A/N: If you know what I mean, if you don't, you can review and ask…)_

Cagalli wiped Aaron down and changed him into a new set of clothes along with a new nappy of course, before her hand phone rang on the dresser-top.

Cagalli picked up the phone to hear Miriallia's excited voice, "Cagalli! Kyo's awake!"

_A/N: Ok, this chappie was slightly longer than the one before, haha! Anyway, if you didn't get what I meant earlier on, don't hesitate to ask, I'll explain, hehe. Anyway, sorry for typo or spelling errors, and pls review! _

_**In the next chapter: Kyo finally arouses from her comatose state and can't be happier when she receives warm hugs and a few french kisses from a certain someone and the news that Athrun is alright. The bunch throw a party for Aaron upon his arrival into the world, and Athrun is present at the party since he has just been discharged, however, what is Cagalli's verdict of him now? **_


	21. Joy & Heartbreak

Chapter 21 Joy & Heartbreak

_A/N: Oh goodness, I feel as though my last chapter was such a letdown because of the confusing part, which I said that you could ask about. It seemed like many of you needed explanations, kyaaaa! Am I that bad an author! Oh well, I'm just overreacting… hehe. Anyway, happy reading!_

"Kyo! You're alright! We were so worried!" exclaimed Miriallia, throwing her arms around her redheaded friend. The auburn-haired girl's olive eyes were swimming in tears of joy.

It had been two days of anxiety, constant waiting and upholding of hopes before the attractive redhead, Kyo Yamajika, the bunch's close friend and also Yzak Jule's beloved female companion, aroused from her deep slumber.

"I'm glad I'm awake too, how're things?" asked Kyo softly, her voice still weak, and it sounded rather unwilling to come out of her vocal-cords and out of her mouth. The redheaded girl was lying semi-propped up in her bed, and was being enveloped in a number of her friend's arms.

"Things are good, way better than before! Especially now that you're ok," said Miriallia excitedly, looking ecstatic as she clapped her hands together. "Plus, Cagalli gave birth to a baby boy, who's now about two days old, and my, he's such a darling!"

"Not to forget, Athrun's awake now. He's got his full memory back too; he remembers everything, including Mia and Cagalli." Added Lacus quickly, looking over at Athrun who was sitting up in his own bed and sipping a cup of tea with milk.

"That's bloody brilliant," replied Kyo, smiling for the first time since she came around minutes before. "What's the baby's name?"

"Aaron," said a voice that everyone recognised as none other than the blonde Orb Princess's, "Aaron Zala," continued Cagalli, looking over at Athrun, who smiled ruefully at her, though she still ignored him.

"That's a beautiful name," stated Kyo, coughing slightly as she sat up fully, with a lot of Yzak's help. "However, I don't sense that things are quite right between you and Athrun? While I was asleep, I sort of heard a few things, so it sort of gave me a notion that the both of you aren't on very good terms with one another."

"The way you say that you were able to hear us, makes me think that you could wake up but didn't because you wanted us to worry more." Said Dearka wilfully, receiving a hard nudge from Kira afterward.

"Don't you say that, Dearka! I'm sure Kyo was too weak to awaken, besides Yzak was alongside her all the while, he didn't eat, sleep or even go to the loo. Or at least I didn't see him go to the loo." Said Kira, triggering a laugh from the others.

"Yeah, precisely the point, Kira! Well said!" praised Lacus sweetly, planting a kiss on the brunette's cheek, as he blushed deeply. "Kyo loves Yzak deeply, I'm sure she wouldn't want to see him pining for her while she knew she could put an end to his worries and all."

"I know he loves me, and he knows I love him just as much or maybe even more." Said Kyo, turning her head slightly and looking up at her platinum blonde boyfriend, who smiled down at her and nuzzled her head lovingly.

"Oh yes, where's Athrun?" questioned Kyo curiously. Her question made everyone fall dead silent as some eyes focused on Cagalli's reaction, and other eyes focused on the charming blue-haired co-ordinator on the bed beside Kyo's.

Dearka and Miriallia moved aside, so Kyo could look to her left and face her fellow friend.

Athrun smiled warmly at her, "Good to see you again, Kyo." The blue-haired co-ordinator smiled widely one last time before turning to look at Cagalli, who simply shifted her gaze away, ignoring him completely.

Athrun's face fell, before he himself turned to look away, returning his attention to his cup of hot tea, which was cooling down quickly as the weather was rather chilly since it was the middle of autumn.

"Miss Kyo, you've come around, at last!" advocated Dr. Ishida, coming out of the staffroom, after he spotted a well and awakened Kyo, who grinned at him widely before nestling further into Yzak's secure and warm arms.

"When can she be discharged?" questioned Lacus eagerly, awaiting an answer from the experienced doctor, who seemed to be thinking her question over.

"I'll do some tests on her today, and if everything seems spick and span, I see no reason why she can't be discharged." Said Dr. Ishida clapping his hands together and laughing merrily, "Also, I think you'll be glad to know that Mr. Athrun can be discharged right now. His blood test results are out, and he's perfectly fine now."

"That's brilliant! Things are certainly perking up, aren't they?" said Miriallia chirpily, dancing around the room jovially before swinging back into Dearka's strong arms.

"Sure they are! In fact, I've got a superb idea that can account for everything good that has happened so far!" suggested Lacus excitedly, getting everyone's attention before proceeding with what she had to say," Once Kyo is discharged, we'll throw a party dedicated to Aaron's arrival and also to Athrun and Kyo's recovery!"

"Sounds great, Lacus, though I don't think he really needs anything this big, at his age." Said Cagalli, gesturing toward a sleeping Aaron cradled in her arms.

"Why not? He's such a darling, no body can resist giving him a cuddle, when he's awake, that is." Said Miriallia happily, kissing Dearka on the cheek.

"It's settled then, I'll notify all of you on the details when the time is ripe. Now, I think these two lovebirds need to spend some quality time _alone_ with each other, hmm?" said Lacus, finishing her statement by looking over at Kyo and Yzak.

"Ooh, make good use of that time Yzak, you don't want to miss out on such a brilliant opportunity! Don't let the idea of chastity ruin your plans!" called Dearka, as Miriallia dragged him out of the medical unit.

"Chastity may not be important to you Dearka, but it is to me, now shut up!" snapped Miriallia heatedly, smacking Dearka hard on his forearm and making him howl in pain.

"Shut the curtains if you like, I don't want to play gooseberry." Said Athrun merrily, looking jokingly at Yzak, who just grinned gratefully at his blue-haired comrade, who winked at him before Yzak drew the curtains shut around Kyo's bed.

"It's been some time since we've been alone, huh?" said Kyo softly, staring up at the almost tired face of her platinum blonde boyfriend, who was busy brushing aside strands of her soft red hair and tucking them behind her ears.

"I guess, you don't know who worried I've bloody been, Kyo." Said Yzak softly, nuzzling his girlfriend's neck lovingly and pressing tiny kisses down her neck and face. The young Jule could only enjoy Kyo's soft skin as he rubbed his nose gently against her cheek.

"What're you doing, Yzak?" laughed Kyo lightly, ruffling Yzak's hair and picking out a bit of string, which was probably from his shirt, out of his hair.

"Enjoying you again, I thought you'd never wake up this time, I mean after everything that's happened, I thought you'd be too weak." Said Yzak so softly, he was barely audible, but thank goodness Kyo was also a co-ordinator who had enhanced hearing.

"But I am awake and alive now, Yzak, now stop living in the past and open your eyes to welcome the present. I'll be with you always and as long as I'll ever live," said Kyo, receiving a passionate kiss from Yzak, who just couldn't help himself, partially because Kyo's lips looked so alluring and soft.

Kyo laughed through the kiss, as the young Jule just kissed her even harder, occassionally opening his mouth so he and Kyo could breathe before they set a world record that said, 'Young couple die from French kissing, first in the entire world to die from such an incident'.

Back outside the curtains, Athrun couldn't help but listen to whatever was going on inside, and could only assume his platinum blonde girlfriend was busy kissing his girlfriend. Of course, his assumption was right, though he couldn't really see to prove it.

The midnight blue-haired young man just lay in his bed, happy that in a while he would be getting up to pack his things and move out of the medical unit and back to his assigned bedroom. However he was also sad to know that the one he truly loved was giving him the extra cold shoulder, Cagalli.

Athrun thought of the blonde Or Princess every single minute ever since he awakened about an hour before. No doubt, he loved his baby son, Aaron Zala, with just as much love, but right now, he just wanted to be reassured that Cagalli still loved him.

The young Zala missed Cagalli awfully, and he just longed to be able to kiss her like before, and for her to hold him when he was afraid of unsure. The thought of suicide had crossed his mind a few times before already if Cagalli was to give up on him, however, he also had a whole life ahead of him, and a son to account for.

Athrun Zala, son of Patrick and Lenore Zala, couldn't always be thinking of himself nowadays. He had to think of Cagalli and Aaron now, he couldn't just end his life like that without thinking of the consequences Cagalli and Aaron would face.

Cagalli would become a single mother, Aaron would be fatherless for the rest of his life, plus, Athrun would feel guilty in his afterlife. Of course, he knew very well that suicide was an option he would never consider, however, he was considering hurting himself to get Cagalli's attention.

Yes, it was a childish thing to do and a very immature way of thinking, but what other choice did Athrun Zala have?

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Another round of good news knocked on Lacus's door that afternoon, when a nurse came to announce that Athrun and Kyo's discharges were now confirmed and that Athrun had already left the medical unit, while Yzak was busy helping Kyo pack up her stuff.

The bunch could only rejoice by cheering and singing stupid songs like, 'Ooh eeh ooh ah ah, ting tang, wa la wa la bing bang'. Even little Aaron was laughing and giggling along with the rest in Cagalli's arms.

"Why don't we start the party now? Then we can invite Kyo and the rest over once they're out of the medical unit!" advocated Lacus excitedly, seeing that no one had any objections, she picked up the phone and ordered some food from the Orb kitchens.

"This is awesome!" yelled Dearka, swinging Miriallia around in circles, as Miriallia laughed out loud, cheering loudly.

"I'm going to invite Athrun over," said Kira, before looking over at Cagalli, "Is that ok?"

The blonde girl's eyes widened before she caught Kira's stern gaze. The brunette young man furrowed his eyebrows and cocked his head to one side, gesturing to his twin sister that she'd better be alright with it or else he'd do something about it.

Nobody told Cagalli Yula Athha 'no'. Nobody ever did; she never listened and wouldn't ever listen.

"No." Cagalli spoke, breaking the silence.

"What?" asked Kira, looking appalled at Cagalli, who settled Aaron in his cot and folded her arms tightly across her chest, and looking determined.

"I said no." repeated Cagalli, this time sounding fiercer and as stern as ever. Aaron was lying in his cot, stretching out his arms in Cagalli's direction, wanting to be picked up, only to realise that his mother ignored him completely.

Being a baby, and babies couldn't wait for anything, Aaron started to fret and cry, kicking his legs and eyes tearing already. Cagalli just stood her ground ignoring her crying baby, to Lacus's dismay.

The blonde girl was still furious with Athrun, and right now, she was too pissed to think about anything else but how to deal with Kira, as her brother was now arguing with his sister over the 'Athrun' issue.

"Sorry, is anything wrong?" came a voice from the bedroom door, which had recently swung open to reveal, Kyo, Yzak and Athrun who were standing by the door, looking refreshed and rejuvenated.

"No! It's just that my _baby brother Kira_ is annoying me again!" growled Cagalli, glaring ferociously at Kira, who was looking worried and angry at the same time.

Aaron was now wailing his lungs off and his little voice was growing hoarse. Feeling very worried, Lacus rushed over and scooped the brawling baby into her arms and tried desperately to calm him down, but to no avail, the baby boy just wailed on.

As a last resort, Lacus rushed forward and thrust Aaron into Athrun's arms. Athrun rocked Aaron gently, and the baby's cries gradually died down, as he snuggled into the warm pair of arms that were embracing him.

Aaron rested his head on his father's shoulder, is tiny mouth sucking on his right fist.

"Who said you could touch him?" exclaimed Cagalli, darting forward, attempting to grab Aaron only to find that Athrun spun out of her reach. Athrun was glaring at Cagalli angrily, clutching a sobbing Aaron in his strong arms.

"What're you playing at, Cagalli? First you give Athrun the cold shoulder, next you let your son cry on and you ignore him, what's next?" hissed Yzak heatedly, in his right hand held Kyo's luggage, which he had offered to carry for her.

"None of your business," scowled Cagalli hotly. One thing she hated was nosy people. She hated Athrun as well, she hated him to the core of his guts.

"You know something Athrun, you're not as great as people see you to be. You're just a useless jerk," hissed Cagalli glaring madly at Athrun, who looked rather hurt as he propped Aaron higher up into his arms.

"Cagalli what's gotten into you? Why have you suddenly harboured so much hate for Athrun?" asked Kyo, shaking her head at Cagalli. The redheaded girl stroked Aaron's head gently and smiled at the teary-eyed baby before returning her gaze to the blonde Orb Princess.

"I can't stand him now, I don't know why. He deserves it anyway!" yelled Cagalli heatedly, glaring at Athrun who backed away slightly, holding a shaking Aaron in his arms.

"Cagalli, how many freakin' times do we have to tell you that what happened was not all Athrun's fault! He was a different person then, he was manipulated! You missed him like hell then, why're you pushing him away now?" questioned Miriallia, striding up to Cagalli and shaking the blonde girl by the shoulders.

"I don't know why I'm like this. I just hate him so much! How he just forgot about me like that!" shrieked Cagalli, breathing deeply and intensely. If not for Aaron who was snuggled up in Athrun's embrace, Cagalli would've long ago lunged out at Athrun, even if she was going to be fighting a losing battle with him.

Cagalli knew very well that Athrun was a lot stronger than she was, and that if she were to fight him, she'd lose. However, she also knew that he loved her too much to lay a single finger on her or Aaron.

The blonde girl had been lying the entire way, she knew very well why she was acting this way. She had too much pride in her; she didn't want to lose face. Since she had started punishing Athrun, she had to finish off with it. Even if she had to hurt Athrun along the way, so be it.

Maybe that was how Cagalli was, headstrong and proud. She would always put herself before anything else.

"Cagalli I don't know why you are so extremely obstinate now! Stop shunning Athrun already! Think about your son, Aaron! You said yourself last time. You had to love Athrun for Aaron's sake! So now that Aaron's born, why are you denying your undying love for Athrun?" Demanded Lacus lividly, staring ever so furiously at the blonde girl.

Cagalli froze at the statement. She remembered, when she had first revealed to the bunch that she was pregnant, they had asked her to give up on Athrun, but she had refused to. Her actions were contradicting the very words she had spoken of before.

The blonde girl knew she had reached a dead end. She was fighting a losing battle. The others were on Athrun's side, and she knew that where Athrun was, justice was. She'd either swallow all her pride and admit defeat, and carry the guilt along with her for life.

However, someone spoke, and his words shattered her heart the very instant he ended.

"Forget it. We all know how stubborn she is, nobody can change her mind once she's bent on doing something. If she doesn't love me, I can accept that." Said Athrun softly, walking up to the baby cot and placing Aaron inside before backing away.

"Athrun, you'd better take your words back before you regret it. D'you know what you just said, mate?" said Dearka stunned, looking horrified at his midnight blue-haired friend, who was staring at the ground.

"Athrun d'you know how serious this is? You just said that you'd accept the face that she didn't love you anymore, which means that _you're willing to stop loving Cagalli_." Said Miriallia slowly, looking intently at Athrun who just bit his lower lip.

"Athrun think it over carefully! You've got a son now," said Kyo shrewdly, looking anxiously at Athrun, as a pregnant silence followed her last words.

"Love is complicating," muttered Yzak under his breath, pushing back some of is platinum blonde hair, and sighing deeply before placing Kyo's suitcase aside and snaking an arm around her waist.

Athrun looked up and stared at Aaron, who was lying in his cot, and twisting his head in an odd angle to stare back up at his father, whom he was a splitting image of.

The blue-haired co-ordinator then turned to Cagalli before saying with tears in his eyes, "I'm sorry,"

With that, Cagalli darted past him, Yzak and Kyo out of Lacus's room and headed back into her own room, before throwing herself onto her bed and bursting into tears.

No! It couldn't be happening! Athrun couldn't give up on her, she loved him; she really did! Why didn't she ever tell him before? Cagalli had brought it all upon herself. She deserved it, but yet she still felt it was too harsh a punishment.

For the rest of the day, Cagalli remained alone in her room, refusing even Aaron, when Lacus had brought him down a couple of times to her room for his feeds. However, Cagalli told Lacus to feed Aaron some of the breastmilk she had stored in bottles up in Lacus's room.

Knowing very well that Cagalli wasn't going to cooperate for a while, Lacus could only do as she was told.

Meanwhile, Athrun himself had turned away anyone who knocked on his room door in an attempt to comfort him. The blue-haired co-ordinator felt defeated, he felt like a failure. He had broken Cagalli's heart and his own at the same time.

No matter how Cagalli or Athrun cried silently on their own, none of them could comfort themselves in any way.

_A/N: Sorry, I know this chappie was unusually short, I've been really busy with the house lately. I'm still settling into New Zealand life, hopefully everything will turn out ok. Anyway, thank you to everyone who has been supporting me and to those who have reviewed, I'm appreciative. Also, I have written a oneshot fic, about Cagalli's thoughts and feelings when she met up with Athrun one last time after he had gotten together with Meyrin. Thank you to those who have reviewed that fanfic, its title is, 'I'll Miss You'. _

_**In the next chapter: Somebody is kidnapped, and the only trace of the culprit is a note asking for a meet up. Cagalli is horrified and keeps blaming herself for not taking Aaron in with her that night. Athrun and Cagalli finally reunite during this tough time, comforting each other while the others also brace up for the encounter with the culprit. Who is the culprit and what does he want? And who was kidnapped? All in the next chappie! **_


	22. Nothing But A Note

Chapter 22 Nothing But A Note

_A/N: Heya, I kind of made it quite obvious who was being kidnapped in this chapter, but for those who still don't know, you'll find out later on! I just want to forewarn you people that no matter how horrifying and unbelievable this fanfic will turn out to be in the following chappies, I just want to say, there will be a happy ending. Also, this fanfic will have a tint of fantasy at the end, so watch out for it Happy reading!_

_To my lovely reviewers: I know I have a habit of using the word 'knowingly' too many times, when I type too fast, I tend to do that. Just goes to show how much more I have to improve on as an author. Also if you do want to post negative remarks, don't logout or be an anonymous reviewer. It's better if you don't so I can reply and thank you for your truthful remarks. I'm not a hateful person, I dun flame ppl. I also know that I keep having very long boring conversations and discussions, I know it's boring, but if I didn't put it down, some important factors would've been lost and you would've gotten confused later on. One of my reviewers has pointed these flaws out several times, and to that reviewer, I'll try my best to make corrections._

Lacus's eyelids fluttered open slightly as she heard soft footsteps on the carpeted floor of her bedroom. To her horror she saw someone, broad shoulders and tall. Someone had intruded her room, and it definitely wasn't anyone she knew of.

Before Lacus could cry out for help, she heard a clunk then everything went black…

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"Lacus, are you in there? It's already 9 a.m, why aren't you out of your room yet?" asked Kira, making sure he was loud enough for his pink-haired girlfriend to hear him through the massive oakwood door of her bedroom.

Behind the brunette young man stood his twin sister, Cagalli Yula Athha, Princess of Orb and also a teenage mother to an absolutely adorable baby boy. The blonde girl tapped her foot on the ground impatiently, wanting to check on her baby.

Lacus got up into a sitting position, realising she was on the floor, she got up and looked around. Her bedroom window was open and the curtains were blowing madly in the strong wind. She looked over at the baby cot by her bed… Aaron… HE'S GONE!

Lacus let out a loud piercing scream at the shocking revelation before her very eyes. Aaron Zala was gone, he wasn't anywhere in sight! It was a mere handful of seconds before Kira broke the oakwood bedroom door down and rushed into the room.

Cagalli came in after her brother, looking anxious and curious at the same time. Her gaze fell on a horrorstruck Lacus, who was pointing petrified at the baby cot, which lay vacant and clean.

The blonde Orb Princess's eyes widened, before she rushed to the side of her baby's cot and frantically searched under its covers and pillows, looking for any sign of her precious baby. However, to no avail, no matter how hard Cagalli searched, the message was clear, Aaron was gone.

Kira scanned the room, and found merely an aluminium can, just like the one he found in Athrun's room before the latter had been knocked out and injured on the head. It seemed pretty obvious that whoever did this had a good foolproof plan and had a motive too.

It was also obvious that whoever had intruded Lacus's bedroom was not bent on hurting Lacus, but bent on taking little Aaron with him.

Cagalli's eyes were watering as she searched high and low around Lacus's bedroom, not missing any corner or crevice. Finally, the blonde girl burst into tears sinking to her knees on the floor.

"He's gone, Aaron's gone! I can't find him anywhere!" wailed Cagalli, burying her face into her hands and weeping like any mother would've done if her baby had been kidnapped.

"Aaron's been kidnapped, look at this." Said Kira, holding up the can he found on the floor of Lacus's bedroom. It was no larger than any other drink can, but it certainly served a different more serious purpose than holding any drinks.

Cagalli perked up her head to look at the only piece of evidence her brother was holding. A mere aluminium can? That was all? No fingerprints? No foot prints? Or even strands of hair or linen?

"What's going on? We heard someone scream," said Kyo, turning up at the doorway with her platinum blonde boyfriend, Athrun, Dearka, Miriallia, and surprisingly, Murrue and Andy.

"Yeah, I nearly went deaf, man." Stated Andy, still looking sleepy and not realising he was still in his boxers, which bore the slogan, 'I love my mummy'.

"Is everything alright?" asked Murrue, her eyes scanning the bedroom, before she caught sight of a crying Cagalli. "I guess not, what happened?"

"Aaron… he's… he's g-gone…" stammered Cagalli, bursting into a fit of noisy tears once more, as she sat on her feet on the carpeted floor of the pink-haired girl's bedroom.

"What? How did that happen? Is anyone else hurt?" blurted out Athrun, unable to control himself, as he stared at all the people around him, his eyes examining them for any sign of injury. He took special care looking at Cagalli, making sure not even a hair of hers had been touched or hurt.

"No, but it's all my fault! I heard someone enter my bedroom last night, but before I could do anything everything went black! And some noxious gas was being released too, something sweet smelling." Said Lacus frantically, feeling very depressed and useless for not being able to keep Aaron safe with her.

"It's not your… fault… L-Lacus… its m-mine," sobbed Cagalli, taking in jerking breaths of air as she went. "I should've taken… Aaron in with m-me… last n-night!"

Cagalli wailed on loudly, her face buried in her fair hands, tears spilling continuously from her honey-brown eyes, as she grieved and pined over the loss of her baby.

Miriallia nudged Athrun in the ribs and jerked her head in Cagalli's direction, gesturing to the co-ordinator with midnight blue-hair to go and do something while he could. Athrun hesitated for a moment before realising that he'd better do something now than regret it when it was too late.

Athrun moved forward and crouched down beside Cagalli before wrapping his arms around the blonde girl. Who just cried on and on, but to everyone's surprise and to Athrun's relief, she turned to him and buried her head into his shoulder.

"I suspect that the gas used here last night was chloroform, what other gas would knock a person out for so long and yet the person can remain alive?" said Kira smartly, examining the precious piece of evidence in his right hand.

"We should notify Lord Uzumi about this, he'd know what to do and how to handle this situation." Said Miriallia resolutely, clenching her jaw and looking over at a decisive looking Kira Yamato.

"But before we notify him, maybe we should take note of this as well?" said Kyo, spotting something white, small and fluttering on the side of Aaron's wooden baby cot. The redheaded girl held up a note, "Look at this,"

The note read:

_You have all day until midnight_

_Before you cannot win this fight_

_I must warn you before you find_

_Bring nothing else but your own kind_

_No knives, no weapons, no nuclear bomb_

_The threats don't start until you come_

_To save the baby you must do_

_Just as this note tells you to_

_**Fuji-san**_

"What the heck does that mean?" Andy cried out, not looking fully awake, unlike moments ago, where he looked absolutely shabby and sleepy.

"It sounds complicated, but I don't think it's as hard to figure out as it sounds." Said Lacus wilfully. Since young, people had always stated to her father or even her that she was gifted both intellectually, and planned to make use of that gift that very moment.

"The first and second lines probably mean that we have until midnight tonight and no more than that before we lose all hope." Lacus started off, studying the note carefully, biting her lower lip as her brain juices started working.

"Right; and the third and fourth lines probably mean that we can't bring anything else but ourselves." Continued Kira determinedly, nodding his head lightly and smiling at his sister who had recently gotten to her feet along with Athrun.

"Can we hurry? We don't have that much time, the last two words say 'Fuji-san', whoever it is that left the note probably wants us to meet him at Mount Fuji. That's a good 50 miles from here!" hurried Miriallia worriedly, feeling her legs shaking.

"That's very true, and it makes sense too. Besides, they've got Aaron, and he's only a baby, which means he survives on Cagalli's milk." Stated Kyo, looking sadly over at the blonde girl, who whimpered slightly at the sound of her baby's name.

"The fifth and sixth lines obviously mean that nothing will threaten us or Aaron until we reach Mount Fuji." Said Dearka, finally saying something that made sense. The blonde young man was usually joking around, and he had never really said anything sensible before.

"Last two lines signify that to keep Aaron safe, we must do just as the note reads." Miriallia finished off, going to stand alongside Cagalli and Athrun to comfort the blonde Orb Princess.

"Let's set off then! I'll notify Lord Uzumi, even if he tries to stop us we'll leave no matter what!" advocated Kira quickly, dialing Lord Uzumi's office number on his cellphone and watched the others running around packing stuff.

"Wait! We're not supposed to bring anything, remember?" said Kyo frantically, stopping Miriallia and Lacus from packing basic necessities like water bottles, rain ponchos or even tissue paper.

"How's that freakin' possible, Kyo? We'll die from dehydration along the way!" screeched Yzak, who was holding two water bottles, probably for himself and Kyo.

"Do you want to save Aaron or not? If you do then you'll bloody do as I friggin' say Yzak Jule!" hollered Kyo loudly, her voice becoming louder as the tension rose in her body.

The young Jule froze in his tracks, hearing the severity in his girlfriend's voice, and although he hated being told what or what not to do, he knew better than to hurt or anger his redheaded female companion.

"Lord Uzumi has given us permission to go, on one condition," said Kira hesitantly, as he turned to look grudgingly at Cagalli. "He allows us to go and gives us his blessing, but Cagalli must stay behind."

"Wha- what? No way! I'm coming!" said Cagalli sternly, her voice still muffled from all the crying and her face blotched from all her tears. The blonde girl clutched on to Athrun's outer jacket, as she looked from Kira to the others.

"Cagalli we know you want to come, but it's dangerous." Said Miriallia softly, afraid the blonde girl might lunge out at her.

"If you guys can go, why can't I? It doesn't make it any less dangerous for all of you than it is for me!" contradicted Cagalli crossly, her eyebrows furrowed in annoyance.

"Cagalli's got a point, besides it's our son, I don't think she's going to let you guys do the dirty work while she sits back and relaxes, when it's our son we're supposed to rescue." Stated Athrun calculatingly, nuzzling Cagalli's head gently as she rested her head on his shoulder.

"But I don't want to lose you," boomed a voice from Lacus's bedroom door, which had amazingly swung open without any of them noticing that it had even twitched or moved on its hinges.

Lord Uzumi walked slowly into the pink-haired girl's bedroom, and came to a halt in front of Cagalli and Athrun, who looked solemnly up at the Lion of Orb.

"Athrun, I know the anxiety and the worry you feel about the kidnap of your son, and no doubt you're afraid to lose him, but as a father you should understand my worries for Cagalli, from a father to his daughter." Explained Lord Uzumi, perking Cagalli's chin up.

"But if I had been the one kidnapped, would you just sit back and let your officials look for me?" questioned Cagalli, her voice shaking uncontrollably as she thought of her baby boy.

Lord Uzumi was caught off-guard and was left dumbstruck by his daughter's statement. It was a number of seconds before he smiled at his blonde adoptive daughter, "Starting to think and speak like a true heir of Orb, well done."

"You may go, but promise me you'll return safe and sound." Said Lord Uzumi, looking at Athrun and Cagalli.

"I promise I'll protect Cagalli even if I have to give my life up for her sake." Pledged Athrun, placing his right fist on his left chest, where his heart was.

"Athrun Zala, you may be the son of Patrick Zala, but you are certainly not a chip off the old block." Laughed Lord Uzumi, before hurrying them all on their way, saying they had transportation waiting for them at the lobby. However, their transport would end at the start of the forest, which led to Mount Fuji, a forest named, The Sinister Forest.

Andy and Murrue had stayed behind to wait for news from the bunch, and so they sent the bunch off wishing them good luck from the Orb lobby.

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"I need to leave you here, I don't think these cars would be able to drive up these steep slopes." Said Lord Uzumi, looking at the edge of The Sinister Forest and wincing at the steep and inclined angle of the rocky forest terrain.

"Take care, father," said Cagalli softly, reaching out to hug her father-cum-Ruler of Orb. The tall bearded man sighed and stroked his adoptive daughter's cheek.

"I should be the one telling you to take care. I'll be in no harm staying at Orb's headquarters, while you will be in the middle of this treacherous looking forest, braving strong winds and wild animals for your baby son." Said Lord Uzumi wilfully, taking one last look at his daughter before sending her on her way.

""Let's go, we have less than a day to get through this forest, which in my opinion, looks more like some giant mountain with a whole lot of shrubbery and trees." Said Kira, brushing a beetle off his shoulder.

"Who knows what lives on this mountain, it's probably fraught with wild predators and maybe even… KING KONG!" exclaimed Dearka, slapping both hands onto his face and letting his jaw hand open.

"You're letting your imagination run all over you, Dearka. King Kong does not exist, and besides, how many times have you watched the remake of that show, by Peter Jackson?" questioned Miriallia impatiently, dragging Dearka along up a few rocks, following in Kira and Athrun's footsteps.

"That's a friggin' bad question to ask, Mirre. Every time I go back to our suite at the end of the day, he's always got that bloody show playing on the DVD player." Snapped Yzak heatedly, helping Kyo up from an amazingly steep and huge rock, well actually, it was more like a boulder.

"It's really ridiculous that we actually followed every single word the note said, I mean, how can we not bring anything? What harm would a simple water bottle have done?" whined Dearka, making noise yet again. As if the bunch didn't have enough things to worry about.

"Well for instance Dearka, a water bottle can be stuffed down a person's throat and kill the person because he can't breathe, or a water bottle can be used to whack someone so hard till he gets knocked out, so he won't ramble so much." Said Kyo, stressing on her last few words as she was trying to signal to Dearka that she was referring to him.

"Wow!" yelled Kira, coming to an abrupt halt behind a rock. A few more steps and the brunette would've fallen over the cliff, and fallen into the foamy waters of a waterfall.

"Damn it! What're we going to do now? We can't friggin' get across this baby with our feet!" hollered Yzak, staring over the cliff and taking a few steps back as a precaution in case he slipped and fell over.

"Oh yes we can," said Athrun, pointing to a small space in-between the water of the waterfall and the rocks, which supported the entire waterfall.

"Wow, your eyes are sharp, I would never have spotted that." Said Cagalli, her eyes dry and her face not blotchy anymore. However, the blonde girl still held a tint of worry in her voice.

"So you want us to walk behind it?" asked Lacus, squinting her eyes to take a closer look at the space where they were planning to walk in. "It looks risky, I mean, the rocks could be slippery, and it doesn't look very wide at all."

"Yeah, but d'you have an alternative besides walking around the waterfall? Walking around it would cost us too much time," said Athrun smartly, looking over expectantly at the pink-haired girl who shrugged in reply.

"Let's go then," said Kira bravely, sucking in a deep breath and leading the way, clearing bits of tree branches and dead vines to make a clear path for the others to walk on.

The brunette reached the first bit of wet rock, and hesitated slightly before using his feet to feel around for firm rocks, before stepping on boldly, Lacus, Athrun and Cagalli following along behind.

Lacus clutched on to Kira's forearm, willing herself not to look down. However, when they were about half way across their little escape route, there was a loud hoarse roar from in front, and Kira halted in his tracks.

"Oh dear…" said the brunette, staring at the huge grizzly bear before him, a mouthful of salmon hanging from it's powerful jaws.

The bear growled a few times, making Kira take a step back.

"Do something… anybody," whimpered Miriallia, hiding behind Dearka, her entire frame trembling.

Without warning the bear charged right at them, and Kira and the others were left with no other choice but to jump off the cliff into the foamy and treacherous waters of the waterfall beside them…

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Kira surfaced for air, feeling the warmth of the sun prickle against the wet skin of his face. Frantic and frightened, hoping none of his friends or _Lacus_ had been harmed; he scanned the vicinity of the waterfall.

"Mirre, Lacus, Kyo, Yzak, Athrun and Cagalli… oh gosh, where's Dearka?" Kira gasped inside his own conscience. The blonde young man was nowhere in sight. Miriallia would freak when she awakened if she realised that her boyfriend had gone missing.

The others were starting to stir, and Athrun was busy comforting a crying Cagalli, who had always had a phobia of water. The blonde girl would screech loud enough if she was so much as left alone by the seaside, let alone thrown down a waterfall.

"Kira! Oh thank goodness you're alright! Is anyone missing?" cried Lacus after choking up some water, and sitting up on the bank of the little stream.

"Dearka? Baby? Where're you?" called Miriallia, wiping her face clean of a few weeds and looking around for her copper-tone skinned boyfriend.

"You've got your answer, Lacus," replied Kira moving over to Lacus and brushing a leaf off her head.

"What? Dearka's missing!" exclaimed Lacus horrified, as she looked around frantically searching for any sign of the blonde young man.

Miriallia seemed to have picked up every single word Lacus had said, and the auburn-haired girl's face immediately paled.

"He's missing?" stammered Miriallia, looking rather stoned and stunned. "How could that be he was right in front of me…"

"We'll find him, somehow," said Kira, searching the nearby waters of the stream, while Lacus frantically searched among the nearby bushes.

It wasn't long before the auburn-haired girl burst into tears and wailed, "NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! DEARKA BABY!"

_A/N: Hehe, I left a cliffie for Miriallia&Dearka fans. I know I'm evil, and this chapter was kind of bad if you ask me, it's not one of the best I've written in my entire time of being a fanfiction author. But I do hope that you guys still enjoyed it though! Sorry for any errors and pls review!_

_**In the next chappie: Sorry, I don't think I want to put previews anymore, I find it spoils the suspense, hehe. Anyway, read the next chappie to find out more! **_


	23. Is It The End?

Chapter 23 Is It The End?

_A/N: Oh my gosh, you ppl are probably going to hate me for this chappie, it's going to be very extreme, so I'm warning you guys now. I know the situation is pretty much like what happened in 'Teen Life', but trust me, the way this chappie is going to end, is going to be extreme and shocking, but once again I say that **this fanfic will have a happy ending**. So no worries! Happy reading!_

"This can't be happening! Dearka's bound to be somewhere here! This is the only place where the waterfall ends!" exclaimed Cagalli, perking up from in-between Athrun's arms and getting up, before scanning the vicinity of the waterfall.

"Dearka? Dearka? Where are you? If you can hear us please… OH MY GOSH! YEEEEEEEK!" squealed Kyo, scurrying out from behind a nearby bush, and running to hide behind Yzak, muttering something about getting sore eyes after seeing something gross behind the bush.

Sure enough, a copper-tone skinned blonde young man, popped up from behind the bush, doing up his pants, and looking very red in the face.

Miriallia froze in her tracks, wondering if her eyes were tricking her of if her boyfriend was standing just several metres from her looking alive and perfectly healthy, except for the face that he was drenched, like the rest of them.

"Kyaaaaaa! Dearka!" screeched the auburn-haired girl, running toward the blonde young man, not caring about the bushes and shrubs she had carelessly trampled over just to get to the love of her life.

"DEARKA ELTHMAN, I WILL MURDER YOU PERSONALLY!" hollered Yzak, looking like an infuriated bull, and staring wide-eyed and madly at his blonde comrade, who was looking wary and cautious of his platinum blonde friend.

"Hell no…" squeaked Dearka, swallowing hard and looking at the young Jule, who looked ready to charge and pounce on him.

Kyo had been, like the others, looking for Dearka among the nearby bushes and forest terrain, when she stumbled upon him peeing behind a bush, and that was what had sent the red-headed girl scurrying back to where her platinum blonde boyfriend was.

"Yzak, cool it. It's my fault, naturally anyone would've relieved his or herself behind a bush in such a suburban place like this." Said Kyo calmly, keeping her arms around her fuming male companion, who was still glaring at his comrade and good friend.

"What? Kyo saw Dearka relieving himself behind a bush?" blurted out Kira, looking shocked and ready to laugh at Dearka, who was biting his lower lip and frowning pissed at his little revelation about his encounter with a female peeping-tom, who was none other than Kyo herself.

Kira burst out laughing along with Athrun, who had his face pressed into Cagalli's back, his shoulders shaking away in absolute hilarity. Miriallia, Kyo and Yzak were not looking very pleased at their friends' reactions, and could only stand pissed, and watch.

It was the blonde young mother who broke the endless sound of ringing laughter.

"Can we get going? It's not your baby that's missing, and maybe that's why you can still laugh so much." Hissed Cagalli, pinching Athrun hard on the ear and making the midnight blue-haired co-ordinator scrunch his face in a painful expression.

Nevertheless, Kira didn't get away with his laughing deed either. His blonde twin sister had aimed a rock at his right shin, and had hit him nicely as she had targeted.

"Sis, I'm the one leading the way, mind you. How are you going to find your way up there, if I'm down and no one else can actually lead the way?" asked Kira, sounding rather arrogant and annoying his sister.

"I can find my way up to Mount Fuji no problem with a strength that none of you can beat, _determination_." Snapped Cagalli heatedly, pushing past her brunette brother, Athrun trailing along behind, grinning at Kira who just pursed his lips.

It was already past three in the afternoon, it seemed that the bunch had taken longer time to get back on track from the treacherous waterfall than any of them had expected. With a pair of determined parents leading the way to find their kidnapped son, nothing seemed impossible.

"Gosh, whose stomach is that rumbling?" questioned Kyo feeling rather annoyed, by the constant rumbling sound that she had been hearing for the past several minutes.

One by one, each of the bunch shook their heads, indicating that none of them had the peace of mind or the appetite to eat anything. However, out of the blue, Athrun stopped them all from moving.

"That ain't someone's stomach rumbling, look over there." Athrun said softly, pointing at a moving shape among the nearby trees. A bit of orange and a black stripes… golly no… a _tiger? _Gosh, and not one, but three. A mother and her two cubs.

"This is just a dream, it can't be real. Someone just kill me now and spare me the pain of being eaten alive," muttered Dearka softly, feeling Miriallia's cold and trembling hand clutch on to his shirt.

Sure enough, three tigers emerged from a tree beside them.

"Don't run, they'll think you're scared and start chasing you," instructed Kira softly, hoping that everyone had heard him, but obviously, someone hadn't, and that someone lost control and started screeching and shouting running about madly too.

"Dearka no!" screamed Miriallia, seeing her blonde boyfriend, running around like a madman, making funny whacky noises, loud and piercing.

Astonishingly, the tigers moved backward and retreated. However, a mad Dearka was still running around, taking great strides as his whacky voice, which reminded Miriallia much of a hyena, echoed throughout the forest.

"Dearka Elthman quit it!" screeched Yzak heatedly, clearly getting much worked up about his comrade's very embarrassing behaviour. "How did I friggin' ever get you as a friend?"

The copper-tone skinned young man slowed down with each breath he took, and halted in front of Miriallia who was looking at him disappointedly.

"Actually, we all have him to thank," said Lacus sweetly, smiling widely at the blonde young man, who looked somewhat puzzled, as his auburn-haired girlfriend took out her handkerchief and began wiping all his sweat away.

"It was Dearka who warded off those beasts for us, all the whacky screechy noises he made frightened the tigers off." Announced Lacus intelligently. The pink-haired girl had always had a thing for animals, and she was pleased to announce Dearka's coincidental deed of letting out his fear and warding off several vicious tigers.

"You have got to be kidding me," said Athrun looking rather shocked and recovering from their little encounter with three tigers.

"No I'm not kidding any one of you," said Lacus grinning widely, and patting Dearka on the back.

"Can we get going? Things keep happening and we keep getting delayed." Said Kyo, reminding the others of their actual purpose for being in The Sinister Forest.

"Kyo's right, we don't have much time left," said Kira wisely, looking over at Cagalli, who was looking on the verge of tears. Clearly the blonde girl was very disturbed by the kidnapping of her baby, and certainly wanted him back in the safety of her arms.

"Relax, we'll get there," said Athrun, in an effort to comfort his blonde female companion. However, the midnight blue-haired co-ordinator looked just as worried as the mother of his son did.

"Yes, of course we'll get there, Athrun Zala! But the question is will we get there in time?" snapped Cagalli hotly, not actually meaning to snap so fiercely at her beloved, but the anxiety and worry she felt constantly was killing her.

Athrun shut up for the next hour as they trudged alongside pinetrees, avoiding mud puddles and slippery roots. Miriallia had already fallen once and grazed her knee, but being just as determined as Cagalli herself, the auburn-haired girl braced up and moved along just as quick-paced as the others.

"Well, well, you gits are here relatively early," said a voice from a tree above, which made the others tilt their head backwards to stare at the masculine man face to face. "Let me make a guess, you took a shortcut through the waterfall instead of going around it?"

"Kisaka," hissed Kyo ferociously, recognising Cagalli's former body-guard at once. "I knew it was the Chairman of PLANTs doing. Let me guess, you were sent by him to look out for us?"

"For a stupid ninja girl, you sure are smarter than I thought you to be, Kyo." Snarled Kisaka, jumping down from the tree branch above them, and landing expertly on the muddy and leafy ground of the forest.

"Kyo is certainly not stupid, unlike a dimwit like yourself, besides, you used to fancy Kyo yourself when you were still working for Lord Uzumi and serving as Cagalli's bodyguard." Retorted Miriallia defensively, her statement making an aggressive young Jule pull Kyo closer to him.

"True, true. But that was the past; besides, all of you are now hooked up with co-ordinators, aren't you?" Kisaka snapped, eyeing each and every one of them like a hawk eyeing its prey from the skies above. "Anyway, I know better than to lay a finger on Kyo now, since she's got something like a bulldog dressed like a human, for a boyfriend."

Yzak snapped the moment Kisaka ended his sentence. The young Jule hated nothing more than being called names that seemed to fit his aggressive personality, and Kisaka certainly didn't appeal well with the platinum blonde either. Yzak had always taken it personally, ever since he had heard from Mirre that Kisaka had always harboured a secret crush on Kyo.

Luckily, Kyo was well enough prepared to dart out in front of Yzak the moment the young Jule lunged forward, so that the redheaded girl was able to stop him from pouncing on Cagalli's former bodyguard. However, Yzak's true strength was revealed when Kyo's feet, which had trekking boots worn over them, still slid on the forest floor even after she had restrained him.

"Cut the crap all of you and let me get to the point. It's a tough decision, and I suggest you make a wise choice for your answer." Hissed Kisaka, circling the bunch, eyeing them closely, making sure none of them moved or even twitched a muscle.

"Fine then, speak." Barked Cagalli angrily, speaking for the first time in hours, since they had gotten back on track from the stream beneath the waterfall.

"The chairman wants me to tell you this. I'll take all the young ladies with me and my men," started off Kisaka, before about a dozen men appeared from behind bushes lunging at Miriallia, Cagalli, Lacus and Kyo.

Some of the armed men dragged the young men away from their beloveds, while the others took hold of all the girls. The young Jule received special attention, as he was tackled by four men instead of two, and the men seemed well-trained and had him in their firm grip in seconds.

Miriallia and Lacus were no match for the two men who tackled them both, and could only watch terrified as their two other girlfriends, Kyo and Cagalli desperately tried to fight their attackers off.

Kyo, who was naturally tomboyish like Cagalli, had been abandoned and found by one of the handmaidens at Orb, and was taken in and raised in Orb itself. Therefore, she had grown up alongside Cagalli. When the duo was about the age of four, Lord Uzumi had both of them trained in Judo. However, since the blonde girl had always been encouraged to be feminine, she never really practiced her moves.

Kyo on the other hand, practiced every single day, meditating, even getting herself two hand-swords, which she used to develop her own unique method of sword-fighting. Therefore, during her stay at Orb, she was nicknamed, 'Ninja Tigress'.

Athrun and the others were tackling their own attackers themselves, however, lost to them in a matter of less than a minute. Cagalli herself, who was worn out and exhausted, finally gave up and gave in to her attacker.

Kyo however, continued her feisty and well-designed moves on her attacker, and used the energy stimulated by her blows to create another blow, something which she had learned herself.

"Struggle and fight more, Kyo, and the baby dies," said Kisaka heatedly, watching as Kyo fought ferociously, looking rejuvenated and tireless.

The redheaded girl froze at Kisaka's recent statement, and gave in to her attacker, eyeing Kisaka closely before scanning the area around them for any sign of little Aaron.

"It's either you follow my instructions, and separate the males from the females, or the baby dies. That is Chairman Zala's instruction, and I will not hesitate to give him a tinkle to let him know that you people are not cooperating." Warned Kisaka, speaking every one of his words with perfect diction and clarity.

The swarm of men slowly dragged Miriallia, Kyo, Lacus and Cagalli away from Kira and the others, who were struggling once more, though not as violently as before.

Yzak however, had managed to break free from his attackers, and had run over to Kyo, who was shaking her head at him.

"Yzak don't start this over, I'll be ok, I promise. Don't make things difficult, baby, I'll be ok," said Kyo, stretching a little further and as far as the rope that bound her would allow her to, and attempting to plant a kiss on Yzak's cheek, only to find that her attacker wrenched her away just as her lips brushed against his cheek.

Kyo, who was clearly annoyed by her attacker's action, gave him a hard backward kick in the shin, causing him to double over before reclaiming his control over her.

The guys were dragged away in another direction, and they could be heard shouting words to their partners till they were barely audible to the girls.

It seemed as though Miriallia, Kyo, Lacus and Cagalli had been dragging their feet along for hours, the dread and apprehension nearly killing them. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity they arrived at the foot of a cave.

Cagalli's eyes perked up when she caught sight of a whimpering Aaron lying, still in his pyjamas, in a fruit basket. Her poor baby looked so hungry, that she felt just guilt not being able to give him any milk.

However, the blonde girl was a little relieved when her attacker untied her and let her attend to her baby, who had started bawling the moment he caught sight of his mother.

Miriallia, Lacus and Kyo were dragged away several metres before being chained to the rocky cavern wall behind them. To their surprise, they were given some water to drink, and though the water didn't look exactly purified and clean, the three girls still gulped it down gratefully.

Within minutes of being tied up, the girls spotted their beloved male companions being tied to the rocky wall opposite them, and the distance between the guys and the girls seemed like 15 odd feet.

They began shouting across to each other, and even Aaron who had been suckling on Cagalli looked on the verge of tears seeing his father being tied up so far away from him and his mother.

However, silence returned the moment the figure of Chairman Zala appeared from behind a rock along with a Mia Campbell, who looked rather shabby and abused. Of course, she had been abused, by Chairman Zala that is.

He had been hitting her and forcing her to do his bidding, not to mention, he even raped her when he felt like it.

"Nice to see you again, _my son_," hissed the senior Zala, smirking maliciously, at an angry Athrun, who had been bound feet and hands to the rock wall behind him.

"In fact, it's a pleasure to be meeting all those who are new here. Like Cagalli Yula Athha, Miriallia Haww, Kira Yamato and _Kyo Yamajika_." Said Patrick Zala, stressing on Kyo's name, as he walked up to the redheaded girl personally, and lifted her chin roughly.

"Don't touch her!" hollered Yzak from a good 15 feet away, struggling madly against the strong and sturdy ropes that kept his limbs bound to the rocky cavern wall.

The young Jule was struggling so much the friction his arms had caused against the ropes had made markings on his arms.

Kyo looked over at Yzak, an expression of pure serenity in her frozen blue eyes. She didn't look scared at all, of course, she _wasn't _scared at all. Chairman Zala could kill her for all she cared, just as long as he didn't touch Yzak or harm any of her other friends.

"You're a feisty young lady, aren't you? Fancy glaring at me so ferociously, even after knowing that you're helpless against me if I were to hurt you." Commented Patrick Zala, letting go of Kyo's face, as she wrenched her chin away from his grasp.

"Chairman Zala has a great deal to tell you people. In my opinion, you all should just take it as a malicious fairytale in wonderland." Advocated Kisaka grandly, though none of the bunch would consider any part of this occasion, grand.

"What d'you want with us, freak? Why'd you kidnap Aaron?" snarled Dearka, not bothering to struggle against the ropes like his platinum blonde comrade.

"Watch your mouth, Elthman. You may be a fairly trained soldier of ZAFT, but other than that, you're utterly useless." Stated the senior Zala, shooting the young blonde copper-tone skinned man an insolent glare of fury.

"Firstly, we kidnapped the friggin' baby to get the whole lot of you here. But that's not the only reason why we kidnapped the baby." Said Kisaka, jumping down from a rock he was sitting on. "We also did some tests, and the tests show that the baby is an entirely new human breed, and so, the baby has to _die._"

"No! I won't let you kill Aaron, you'll have to come through me first!" shouted Cagalli, clutching her baby close to her chest, as the baby Zala whimpered slightly, his tiny frame shaking from the low temperature of the cavern.

"Oh don't worry, we'll have to kill you as well, and maybe Athrun too. He's become to shallow to be considered my son now," continued the senior Zala, moving back a few steps and taking two sharp bladed sword from Mia.

"Now you see, all of you are pathetic wimps. I have to thank Kisaka for his very kind help throughout my entire plan. At the end of the day, if everything goes well, the entire Zala family will be wiped off clean from the face of the earth!" laughed Patrick cruelly, sharpening the blade of his swords.

"Athrun, Cagalli and their pathetic son will be vanquished!" exclaimed Patrick madly, making many of the others wonder if he was indeed, a maniac. "And so will Kyo _Zala_,"

"Kyo? What's this got to do with Kyo? And why the hell did you call her 'Kyo Zala'?" yelled Yzak, obviously demanding an explanation, and a full and detailed one too.

"Now this is where the interesting part comes in," said Patrick, settling himself on a nearby rock and continuing his explanation. "Kyo was abandoned at Orb, and was found and raised by an Orb handmaiden, Haruka Takahashi, am I right?"

"Yeah so? What's Haruka got to do with you?" hissed Kyo heatedly, kicking nearby rocks further away from her.

"God question, you see, Kyo. You are the daughter of my elder brother, Leon Zala, who is now deceased, thanks to me. I killed him reason being, he was the current heir of our family fortune. Coming back to now, I want to kill you, because _you, Kyo Zala_, _daughter of Leon Zala,_ are the next and rightful heir of that family fortune." Explained the senior Zala.

"So you see, even you, Kyo, have a connection with Chairman Zala, and that is the reason he wants you here, and for all those who do not bear the Zala family name, you're just hear for fun and as to serve as an audience, to what you're about to witness." Added Kisaka knowingly.

"You're sick in the mind, father! Ever since mother passed on you've become so manipulative and hard-hearted, mother would never have wanted you to become this way!" bellowed Athrun ferociously.

"Don't you dare talk to me about your mother like that! Kisaka, release him!" yelled Patrick Zala, slipping the two swords between his hands.

Kisaka did as he was told and released Athrun, who quickly darted toward Cagalli.

"Goodbye Zalas!" yelled Patrick Zala, throwing the swords at Cagalli and Athrun.

Athrun darted in front of Cagalli, the sword hitting him hard and fast in the back, the sword aimed at him missing him and flying right past Cagalli.

However, Kisaka rushed out from behind, picking up the sword thrusting it through the blonde mother, who felt nothing but pain and nothing else but a screech from her baby.

Cagalli looked down, her eyes tearing madly form the pain and heartbreak. The sword had pierced right through her and it had gone through Aaron too. Athrun was lying on her lap, still breathing eyes closed, with the sword sticking out of his back.

Aaron's breathing had ceased all of a sudden, and so had Athrun's. Realising it was the end, she closed her eyes and fell backwards, before seeing nothing but black.

"NO!" yelled Kyo, and she heard a gunshot, thinking she had been killed she quickly scanned her body for any bullet marks, however, all she saw was the senior Zala falling to the ground in front of her.

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Cagalli's eyes fluttered open, but she jerked them back shut when she was greeted by a burst of light.

"Where am I? Why's everything so bright? Where's Aaron? Where's Athrun? Am I dead? Or am I somewhere else?" the blonde girl questioned herself, as in front of her she saw people, people with halos on their heads, some with white wings, some with grey ones.

Where was she?

_A/N: KiraTatashi! How could you? You killed the happy family? But praise yourself for killing the mad freak, Patrick. But still? How could you kill, Athrun, Cagalli and Aaron? Curse you KiraTatashi! Sorry for the heartbreaking chapter! Pls review! _

_**In the next chappie: Is Cagalli dead or alive? Where is she? She also meets a woman, a woman who reminds her awfully of Athrun… Who is she? **_


	24. Where Angels Roam

Chapter 24 Where Angels Roam

_A/N: I feel so terrible right now, I tortured my characters! Anyway, some of you who still have doubts about Athrun, Cagalli and Aaron, your doubts will be cleared in this chappie, though not all problems will be solved, most of your doubts will be cleared off. My last chappie was very terrorising, I know, I cried writing it, and I punished myself by banning myself from any chocolate stuff for two weeks. Anyway, I hope this chappie is better for you guys, enjoy!_

"NO!" Kyo yelled again, struggling wildly against the ropes that tied her down to the rocky cavern wall behind her.

Mia stood from where she had been the entire while, behind a boulder, holding a gun in both hands, still standing in an aiming position. The pink-haired girl was looking shocked, petrified and stoned, slowly, she fell to her knees and burst into tears.

"Mia Campbell you bitch! You just shot Chairman Zala!" hollered Kisaka, storming over to the crying girl and pulling her to her feet by pulling her long silky hair, causing her to cry out in pain.

"I meant to… after what he's done… not just to me… but to Athrun and all! He deserved it! Now I wonder how I even came to work for a creep like him!" Mia yelled back, breaking free of Kisaka's grasp and glaring at him.

"Kisaka you killed Cagalli! YOU KILLED CAGALLI!" yelled Kira, as tears sprung up in his lavender orbs. The brunette twin brother stared down at the lifeless body of his twin sister, trying to hold back tears, and trying to fight back the feeling of regret.

Sure Kira was regretful, he regretted not being able to bond well with his twin sister while he could, and he regretted not being able to save her.

Lacus and Miriallia were also in tears. Each of them wondering whether this was just a frightful nightmare, which seemed all too realistic to be a bad dream.

However, Lacus came back to reality, glaring ever so hatefully at Kisaka.

"You killed Cagalli, and not just Cagalli… but Aaron too! Aaron was just a baby! He deserved to live longer than he had!" screeched Lacus, struggling against the ropes just like Kyo, who was struggling so hard, tears were leaking down her face.

"I don't bloody care! After all, this friggin' plan is a success!" shrieked Kisaka triumphantly, throwing his fists up in the air and waving them about madly, laughing like a crazy man.

"Not yet…" said Kyo quietly, before she raised her voice, still struggling madly, and said, "Not until you kill me!"

With a loud exclamation, Kyo managed to free herself from the binding ropes. The redheaded girl had been rubbing a tiny section of the rope against a sharp part of the rocky wall behind her, and the friction had caused the rope to burst and break.

The attractive redheaded girl grabbed two swords where Mia was standing, one in each hand, spinning them in her hand like a professional.

"The Zala family won't be completely vanquished until you kill me," said Kyo, approaching Kisaka with both swords clutched readily in her hands.

"Kyo what're you friggin' doing!" yelled Yzak heatedly from 5 metres away, still trying to break free of the ropes, now trying even harder after seeing that his female companion had managed to succeed in doing that.

"Stay back Yzak, this is between Kisaka and I. The fate of the Zala family is in my hands, whether my family members are dead or alive, I believe they're here with me, cheering me on." Said Kyo, streams of tears sliding down her cheeks.

"Kyo don't be rash! Don't give up your life out of anger and hatred! Yzak loves you and so do all of us! Cagalli, Athrun and Aaron are already gone, we don't need you to go too!" cried Miriallia, jumping up and down in her bound state.

"I'm not fighting out of hatred or anger; I'm fighting out of justice!" yelled Kyo, lunging forward and aiming a stream of never-ending attacks at Kisaka, who seemed to have been trained in martial arts as well, and blocked them all off, occassionally ducking here and there.

Kisaka grabbed another, now fighting even better than earlier, now that he had a weapon in his possession.

"You'll never win this fight, Kyo Zala! I've been trained well, trained and taught even more than you ever have!" exclaimed Kisaka, stabbing his sword everywhere, attempting to trick Kyo's eyes so he could finish her off.

Kyo was much too focused to reply the former bodyguard and just concentrated on attacking her opponent, and defending when she needed to.

Yzak could only watch in suspense as his beloved battled on. Although he knew very well that Kyo had been training on her own for her entire life, and that her skills were not only effective but unique, he still held much worry for her.

The young Jule finally stopped struggling, and could only watch filled with worry, and hope that his girlfriend would be alright.

_Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

"Where am I?" Cagalli mumbled, sitting upright slowly and finally finding the courage to open her eyes and face the funny atmosphere she was in.

However, the blonde girl jumped backward when she came face to face with a pretty lady, with midnight-blue hair and emerald eyes, Athrun's eyes.

"Athrun?" muttered Cagalli, staring at the woman, who was smiling back down at her and holding a glass of water and a tray of food.

"Correction my dear, it's Athrun's mum," replied the lady, sitting in a chair beside Cagalli, who had just realised that she was in bed in some kind of weird hospital.

The nurses were dressed like normal nurses, only they had _wings_. Some had white wings, others had grey ones. The patients looked like normal people as well, only they had wings too!

"Wait a sec, what's going on? Why's everyone got wings, and why's it so bright? And how can you be Athrun's mother? She's dead!" said Cagalli, looking around her at surroundings and discovering that the food people were eating looked like the food only rich people ate.

"Yes my dear, I am dead, and so are you." Said the woman, smiling widely down at Cagalli and shoving a spoonful of bananas and cream into her mouth.

The thought struck Cagalli hard in the head. She was dead? Then she remembered everything that had happened; Chairman Zala, Kisaka, Aaron… sword. The sword had pierced both her and Aaron, and Athrun had been killed as well, but she didn't feel dead, she felt very much alive.

"Oh my gosh, where's Athrun? Where's my baby?" asked Cagalli frantically, looking at the woman who claimed to be Athrun's mother and starting to cry in despair.

"Relax my dear, Athrun and Aaron are fine. I know where your baby is, once I get you out of here we'll go pick your baby up from the Reclaim Nursery." Reassured the woman. "Oh yes, before I forget, I'm Lenore Zala, please call me Lenore."

Cagalli still looked rather stoned. "What about Athrun then? Where is he? Is he alright?" questioned the blonde girl.

"I don't know, Cagalli, but I'm sure he's alright. I saw him enter this place through the Reflector earlier." Said Lenore quietly, feeding Cagalli some more of the rich food and sponging her forehead.

Out the blue, a winged child appeared before Lenore and Cagalli, sitting on a cloud, dragging another bigger cloud, on which sat two luggage bags.

"Miss Cagalli Yula Athha, thy luggage has arrived," greeted the angel before blessing Cagalli and vanishing in a poof of smoke.

"What's a Reflector?" asked Cagalli, looking at Lenore, who was busy making the luggage bags vanish into thin air again.

"Oh, it's basically something that allows you to see your loved ones back down in the mortal world. It looks like a basin filled with mercury," said Lenore descriptively, brushing a fleck of dust off her shoulder.

"What did you just do with those luggage bags?" asked Cagalli, realising that the luggage which was supposedly hers, had vanished completely.

"Oh, I just sent them back to my apartment. They'll be in your room, for the meantime until you settle down; you'll be staying with me. We'll go pick Aaron up, and then we'll look for Athrun, wherever he is." Said Lenore intelligently, pulling Cagalli out of the bed and gesturing to her to follow.

On the way out of the hospital, Cagalli noticed some more weird things. For instance, when they came out of the hospital grounds, the blonde girl was greeted by a scene of lush and picturesque greenery, and the trees were pruning themselves!

The trees had arms something like the Whomping Willow from the novel 'Harry Potter', but of course, these trees were not even a quarter as vicious as the infamous tree from the award-winning novel.

The shrubberies on the sides of the pavement were dancing in the wind, and I mean dancing in the wind. They were swaying in the soil and their leaves were clapping against each other like clapping hands.

"Umm Lenore, if we're dead, then where are we?" asked Cagalli curiously, looking around her and seeing winged children playing harps and normal people flying on wings.

"We're in heaven of course. We have reached the land of eternity. People live life in bliss over here, and there is hardly any havoc." Replied the blue-haired woman, walking up a slightly inclined slope toward a tiny building, whose sign read, 'Reclaim Nursery'.

"You're unusually quiet, Cagalli dear. Being here just for less than a day, I expect your mind is exploding with questions?" stated Lenore caringly, looking back at a rather stoned Cagalli who just smiled voluntarily.

Of course her mind was exploding with questions. Since young Cagalli had always wondered if there was really life after death, and people kept telling her that she had to believe. However, her main concern now was finding Aaron and Athrun.

"Don't be shy my dear, ask away if you must." Urged Lenore Zala, entering the small building and checking in at the counter with the kind looking lady, who also had a pair of wings.

It was only then that the blonde girl realised that Lenore didn't have a pair of wings, and although she wanted to ask, the blonde girl thought it would be rather rude.

"So Aaron is supposed to be here?" questioned Cagalli, looking around and seeing rooms and rooms all full of toddlers, babies and children.

"Yes my dear, and according to the receptionist he's currently in Room 46, on the second floor." Said Lenore, leading the way to the lift lobby and taking the lift up.

Cagalli was still pondering over the fact on why everyone else had wings except Lenore and herself. Maybe she and Lenore were different, or maybe they were special.

"My dear, I know you're wondering on the topic of 'wings'." Lenore suddenly stated, startling the blonde girl and busting her out of her thoughts.

"How'd you know?" asked Cagalli, truly flabbergasted at the fact that the blue-haired woman could read her mind.

The Zala mother laughed lightly, "Sorry to frighten you darling, you see, everyone here can see each other's auras. The reason you can't is because you haven't learnt to yet. Don't worry I will teach you once we get home after picking Aaron up, and I do have wings."

Within seconds of ending her sentence, the blue-haired woman closed her eyes for a moment, concentrating hard, and with a slight swishing sound, a pair of grey wings sprouted out of her back.

Cagalli stepped back slightly, still trying to get used to her new surroundings.

The lift door slid open, and the duo stepped out of the lift, following the signs before approaching Room 46.

"Here we are," said Lenore, swinging open the room door to reveal an unusually large room. Certainly, the room looked larger than it looked on the outside.

The well-ventilated room was large, opulent and well-furnished, with lots of toys and a mini playground in the centre of the room.

A young woman walked up to Lenore and Cagalli, "Hello, may I help you?"

"Yes, we're looking for Aaron Zala?" replied Lenore, seeing that the blonde mother was still in a stoned state, and didn't seem willing to answer the question either.

"Oh yes, what a darling that baby is. No doubt, he'll grow up to be a handsome chap," said the young woman, smiling jovially leading the way through the room and into another conjoining room.

There were animals in this room, and the idea of 'animals' startled Cagalli. The animals weren't mere animals either; they were 'wild' animals. There was a White Tigress with her three cubs and a Lynx cub.

Then in a corner, Cagalli spotted her baby, fair, charming and absolutely healthy. Aaron was playing with the tiger cubs, kicking his legs around on the ground, laughing from time to time.

"See, I told you Aaron would be here, and he's alright too." Said Lenore quietly, urging Cagalli on to go and claim her laughing baby, who had just spotted her and was reaching his little arms out to her.

However, Cagalli didn't feel very comfortable moving so close to a mother tiger and her cubs, in fact she was terrified to do that.

"Don't worry about Leela," said the young woman, gesturing toward the mother tiger. "She's an excellent mother and very caring, even with human babies, and it seems she's been watching after your son for you too."

Cagalli forced a smile at the young lady and boldly walked forward and scooped Aaron into her arms. The baby Zala began snuffling around her shirt, obviously looking for milk.

"He's such a darling, I hope you have a nice day though!" called the young woman, before sending Lenore, Cagalli and Aaron on their way.

"Ok, we're done here. Now let's head back to my place, then we can locate Athrun using the Reflector." Said Lenore smartly, quickening her pace and leading the blonde girl away.

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Meanwhile, Cagalli wasn't the only one having a hard time adjusting to new surroundings. Apparently, the moment Athrun crossed the Earthly Barrier he had been stuck in a queue leading to the pearly gates of Heaven, and before the gates sat St. Peter.

The young Zala had been stuck in the queue the entire day, which felt like an eternity to Athrun. Finally, for some reason, a little winged child flew up to the handsome male and invited him to step up forward before St. Peter's desk.

Athrun noticed a black swirling hole beside St. Peter's desk, and the sucking action from the hole was making it difficult for Athrun to keep himself steady on the ground.

"Hmm, Athrun Zala, died saving his girlfriend and son, fatal injury; stab wound." Read St. Peter from a piece of paper, scanning through more pieces of paper, Athrun assumed was his records.

"You know something, if The Almighty One hadn't sent me a note asking me to spare you I would've sent you swirling down that black hole right into Hell. Go." Gestured St. Peter, opening the gates for Athrun to enter.

Meanwhile, back at Lenore Zala's apartment, Cagalli was spending some private time alone with her son, who was suckling contentedly. The blonde girl felt exhausted, and the apprehension she was feeling was nearly overpowering her completely.

Cagalli had found Aaron, which was a big relief as the baby boy was nearly helpless without her. However, another big part of her life was still amiss, Athrun Zala, her beloved boyfriend and father of her son.

There was a soft knock on the door, and Cagalli invited the person, who obviously was Lenore, in. The woman with midnight-blue hair smiled at Cagalli, as she watched the young mother breastfeed her child.

"It was 18 years ago since breastfed my own child. Now, he's way too big to be getting his nutrition off me, and he's even a father himself now." Said Lenore sitting beside Cagalli on the side of her bed, and caressing Aaron's head.

Cagalli laugh slightly for the first time in days, tucking her brassiere back properly and pulling down her shirt when Aaron was done with his feed. The blonde mother propped her baby up on her lap, so he could take a look at his grandmother.

Lenore Zala smiled at her grandson, "You have made me a very proud grandmother, and I also feel very old now."

"No, you don't look that old." Said Cagalli quietly, wiping some milk Aaron had burped up off his face, and settling him on her lap.

"Actually, if you count the number of years I've been here since I passed on, I'd be 42." Stated Lenore Zala bluntly, tickling Aaron's sides and making the baby Zala laugh joyfully.

"Why don't you hold him?" said Cagalli, taking Aaron by the underarms and reaching him out to Lenore, who smiled eagerly and took hold of her absolutely, positively cute and chubby grandson, who was obviously very well nourished under the care of his blonde mother.

Lenore sighed sadly, "I've just been watching your cousin-in-law, Kyo Zala, through the Reflector, and it seems she has beaten your former body-guard, Kisaka. It appears she's killed him. That's going to be one black mark on her record,"

"She fought with Kisaka?" asked Cagalli shocked. The blonde girl was getting used to her surroundings a lot faster now, and she felt a feeling of home just looking at Lenore's apartment and Lenore herself.

"Yes, she did. Your friends and your twin brother are now heading back to Orb, and it appears Kira has already delivered the news of Athrun's, Aaron's and your death back to Orb. They're sending a few helicopters to pick up your bodies," explained Lenore sadly, looking up at her daughter-in-law.

"I promised my father I'd come back safe, but it looks like I broke that promise," said Cagalli softly, her eyes welling up with pearly tears, as she looked down and away from Lenore and Aaron.

"Yes, I realised that, but think of it this way, I'm sure they know you're up here, watching down over them." Said Lenore, trying to encourage Cagalli to look on the bright side of life.

"Yeah but I feel so useless right now, I don't know what to do," sobbed Cagalli breaking down in tears, and accepting a couple of tissues from Lenore.

"Cagalli dear, you're not useless." Said Lenore sternly, propping Aaron higher up on her hips. "Nobody is useless in this world, besides, if you were useless, you wouldn't have helped Athrun and your friends, and you wouldn't have loved Athrun, and last of all, you wouldn't have been able to bring Aaron into the world if you were useless."

Cagalli sniffled slightly, before her entire frame began trembling. Instantly, the blonde girl broke down in tears, releasing all the anguish and worry she felt.

"That's it, let it all out," said Lenore, stroking Cagalli's head gently as the blonde girl buried her head into her mother-in-law's lap.

Aaron was staring curiously down at his blonde mother, sucking his tiny fist as he did so. Then, he laughed jovially shaking his tiny fists up and down and giggling away, something that reminded Cagalli of what Miriallia did when she was embarrassed.

"Don't laugh, honey, you do a lot more crying than your mother does," said Lenore significantly, tapping her finger on her baby grandson's nose, making the baby Zala twitch his nose nonchalantly.

After a bit more of weeping, Cagalli finally stopped shedding her tears and followed Lenore down to the main hall, where a basin propped up on a table stood in the middle of the room.

The blonde girl assumed it was a Reflector, as it looked just like what Lenore had described a Reflector to be earlier on.

"I'm sure you know what this is, my dear, it's a Reflector. Now, we are going to use this to check up on your friends back down in the mortal world, and most importantly, locate my dearest son, Athrun Zala." Said Lenore casually, adding a handful of what looked like golden dust into the liquid-like substance in the Reflector's bowl.

Cagalli peered over at the source of the golden dust, which happened to be a palm sized bottle, which read, "Sprinkle Powder".

"How does it work? What're we going to do now?" asked Cagalli inquisitively, scanning every inch of the Reflector and paying most attention to the centre of the Reflector's bowl.

"Really easy, just state the person's name and where the person is, for example," said Lenore, passing her grandson over to his mother and clearing her throat, "Kira Yamato, Mortal World!"

Instantly, a scene appeared in the Reflector's bowl. Cagalli saw Kira and the others, in a church, holding a funeral for her, Athrun and Aaron. It was quite obvious that Kyo had fought again, as she had her right arm and head bandaged.

To Cagalli's utmost surprise, she someone else there as well, Mia Campbell.

"What's Mia doing there? They brought her back to Orb with them?" asked Cagalli, stunned at the pink-haired impersonator's presence.

"Apparently, she was the one who shot Chairman Zala dead, and later on, she stabbed Kisaka with a knife when he had a hold on Kyo." Explained Lenore wilfully, this time sprinkling a handful of silver dust into the Reflector's bowl.

The source of this peculiar dust was once again another bottle, which this time read, 'Silver Solvent'.

Lenore then sprinkled another handful of Sprinkle Dust into the Reflector's bowl, "Athrun Zala, Land Of Eternity!"

Sure enough, Athrun's face appeared in the Reflector's bowl. Cagalli stifled a soft cry at the sight of her beloved. The blue-haired co-ordinator male looked rather lost and unsure of what to do; he walked past a sign which read, "Springflower Vale".

"Springflower Vale, that's on the other side of this land, how'd he get there?" Lenore said, pursing her lips and furrowing her eyebrows in deep thought.

"Will it be hard to find him?" asked Cagalli quietly, propping her son higher up in her arms, and staring at the brooding face of Athrun Zala.

"We've already found him dear, the hard part is getting to him." Said Lenore, sighing and using another handful of Silver Solvent. "But before we get going, I've got to teach you some things."

_A/N: I know many of you want to kill me right now! I killed Athrun, Cagalli and Aaron, kyaaaaaa! I'm sorry, I'm EVIL I know! But I hope this chapter was better than the last! Just to let you know, this is the **second-last chappie!** Hope you liked it, and pls review!_

_**In the next chappie: Lenore teaches Cagalli some basic skills and the duo continues their search for Athrun along with Aaron, will they be able to find Athrun? **_


	25. Together Forever

Chapter 25 Together Forever

_A/N: Ok this is the **last chapter**. Don't fret though, I've got another upcoming Athrun&Cagalli fic, its title will be featured in my author's note at the end of this chappie. For now, I just want to thank all my supportive reviewers and all those who have given me inspiration! Enjoy this last chapter!_

"You're not concentrating enough, dear. Like this. Focus on the person and picture his or her face in your mind, concentrate hard and you will then be able to see his or her aura."Explained Lenore patiently. The blonde girl she was trying very desperately to teach couldn't help but admire Lenore for her patience.

"Ok, you can do this Cagalli," the blonde mother thought to herself, as she took in a deep breath and focused on her baby. Cagalli had initially wanted to practice on Lenore instead, but then found that it was somewhat rude, since Lenore was her elder.

"That's it, maintain your posture, focus and breathing. Picture Aaron's face," Lenore coaxed on, as she watched Cagalli fight for concentration, focusing on her baby son's face.

Cagalli felt an odd tingling sensation before she relaxed her eye muscles and gasped, there was a dream bubbled hovering over Aaron's head, and in that bubble showed Aaron's true emotions and intentions.

The blonde teen mother chuckled as she watched her baby's aura. Aaron was feeling ecstatic, and was thinking about feeding again. Cagalli had just breastfed him lest than a quarter of an hour ago, he couldn't possibly be hungry again.

"I've got it, yes!" said Cagalli enthusiastically, punching her fist into the air as she picked Aaron up from the high-chair he was sitting in and spun him around, before kissing him on the forehead.

Lenore tittered at her daughter-in-law's action, "I'm glad you've learnt how to see people's auras now, honey. Though this isn't the end, it's only the beginning. You've still got to learn how to speak to people even though they're not with you, and how to retract and spread out your wings."

Cagalli froze in her actions, "I have wings? And what's this about being to speak to people when they're not with you, it sounds preposterous!"

"Yes, it's preposterous in the Mortal World, but not here. This way of communication is called 'Mind Communing'. It's the most popular way of communication here," stated Lenore smartly, changing the water in all of her vases, and making the weird flowers in them perk up instantly and brighten in terms of colour.

"I think I'll teach you how to spread your wings out first, it'll be our method of transport later on when we set out in search of Athrun." Said Lenore clearing her throat and gesturing to Cagalli to take a quick look at her own wings before they started off on Lesson 2.

Cagalli was still rather dumbstruck about the fact that she had her own pair of wings, and that she would be able to fly with them, like Lenore had told her about.

"Now, it's really easy, you just have to contract your shoulder muscles and once your body senses that you want to extend your wings, your wings will spread out." Said Lenore, giving a demonstration by using her own pair of grey wings.

"I'll try, but I'm not promising anything. You've seen for yourself how much of a slow learner I am," said Cagalli deliberately, settling Aaron back into his high-chair and doing just as Lenore had instructed.

Cagalli flexed her shoulder muscles and felt a strange rumbling feeling just by her shoulder blades, and when she saw Lenore smiling widely at her, she gathered up all her courage and looked over her back. To her utmost amazement, Cagalli saw that she had extended her own pair of white wings.

"They're perfect, flying is no problem. It'll come as a second nature the moment you start trying, it's just like walking except in the air." Said Lenore, picking Aaron up and cradling him in her arms as the baby boy looked rather drowsy.

"Now, I have to learn Mind Communing?" asked Cagalli, looking over at Lenore.

Athrun's mother smiled, "Yes, absolutely."

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Meanwhile, back in the Mortal World, things were pretty much back to normal. Other than Lord Uzumi's constant grieving, and the bunch's sadness for their friend's deaths, things were definitely starting to perk up.

In fact, Kira and Lacus had already discussed marriage, and were certain they wanted to spend the rest of their lives in each other's arms. Lacus had broken the news to Kyo, Yzak, Dearka and Miriallia just minutes ago, and already the pink-haired girl had influenced Kyo greatly.

As for Mia Campbell, Lord Uzumi had hired her to be one of the handmaidens at Orb, and ever since she had turned over a new leaf, she had made countless friends, some handmaidens, others receptionists or secretaries.

"It's great that the both of you have finally decided on marriage, though Dearka and I have chosen to wait another six months before we think about tying the knot." Said Miriallia wisely, leaning back onto Dearka's chest.

"I'm so excited, and since I don't want to do it alone with Kira, I have asked Kyo to join us if she and Yzak are ready." Said Lacus, giggling away as she looked at Kyo and Yzak, who were dumbstruck.

"You'd better say yes, Yzak. She's pretty and sexy; you don't want anyone snatching her away from you. But of course, Mirre's way sexier." Said Dearka, afraid that Milly might pinch him.

"Shut up, Dearka," snapped Yzak heatedly, crossing his arms in front of Kyo, who was standing in front of him.

"Are you saying you won't say yes?" asked Kira teasingly, looking over at the young Jule, who was reddening in the face.

"Come on Yzak, you know you want to. Besides, after you get married, on the wedding night she'll be all yours. You'll get to do whatever you want with her, you know you're aching to please her, to touch her, to… OW!" howled Dearka, when he received a hard smack on the head from Miriallia and a kick in the shin from Kyo.

"Yes, he'll be able to legally have sex with me after we're married, and yes he'll be able to touch me all he likes, but you don't have to emphasize on it, Dearka Elthman!" barked Kyo annoyed, hands on her hips as she glared at Dearka.

"So is it a yes, or a no?" asked Kira, circling the young Jule, who was slowly losing his patience. The platinum blonde had never liked being interrogated or being watched this intently.

"What d'you think I'd say? It'd be the first answer you'd think of, _yes_." Said Yzak, quietening down at his last word.

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"Brilliant!" exclaimed Lenore Zala, clapping her hands together, clearly pleased with Cagalli's marvellous performance. The blonde girl had finally completed her learning journey, and had learnt Mind Communing a lot faster than when she had started off.

"Now, while you were having a few practices earlier on, I checked up on my dearest son again, and it appears he's been moving around. He's no longer on Springflower Vale; he's on Aspiring Cove now. That's about two miles from Springflower Vale." Stated Lenore Zala calmly, cradling a sleeping Aaron in her arms.

"So how do we find him?" questioned Cagalli curiously, extending her wings and looking at them over her shoulder.

"Well there's only one way to find him, isn't it? We'll just have to _look_ for him. It won't be easy though, he's constantly moving around. I will try Mind Communing to communicate with him, but since he hasn't mastered that skill yet, I don't know if he'll get my message." Sighed the female senior Zala, who concentrated hard, attempting to communicate with her lost son.

Cagalli was rocking a sleepy baby Zala, who had stirred a little, when his grandmother had passed him on to his blonde mother, who had always welcomed him with warm and loving arms.

After minutes of hard concentration, Lenore gave up trying, wiping beads of sweat from her forehead with some tissue paper.

"It's not much use I'm afraid, we'll just have to look for him the hard way, and pray he stays in one place." Said Lenore, grabbing her handbag and extending her own pair of grey wings, "We'll bring Aaron, you can carry him, you won't be using your arms to fly anyway."

The duo and the baby Zala set off soon after, hoping to find their lost relative, who probably felt like he was wandering aimlessly in some weird world, not knowing if he was dead or alive.

The blonde girl had found that her mother-in-law's words were right, and that flying came like a second nature to her.

"How long will it take for us to get to wherever Athrun is?" asked Cagalli, trying to keep her eyes open, as the wind was whipping through her face and brushing her fringe in the way of her vision.

"About 10 minutes if we're lucky," replied Lenore sweetly, "Do look out for other people flying, and there are birds as well, and they won't like it if you cash into them."

"I'll take note," said Cagalli smiling down at Aaron, who had awakened fully and was now enjoying the very cool breeze blowing past him as he lay cradled in his mother's arms.

Cagalli couldn't help but gaze down at the amazing scenery she was seeing below her as she flew high above in the innocent blue skies. There were enormous oak trees, which were pruning themselves, and there were also long running rivers, which were a rich colour of navy blue.

"Beautiful isn't it?" said Lenore, looking over at the blonde teenage mother, who just smiled from ear to ear and nodded happily, shifting her baby up higher in her arms, afraid she might drop him.

"Don't worry, even if you drop him, the clouds would catch him," alleged Lenore, looking down at the white fluffy figures below her. Seeing the blonde mother looked rather confused, Lenore continued explaining, "The clouds can actually see us, so if you drop Aaron, they'll swerve in and catch him. So he'll land on them,"

"Wow, that's interesting. I never thought that a world like this would ever exist, except in fantasy dreams." Affirmed Cagalli, looking down at the fluffy clouds and smiling down at them. To her amazement, the cloud directly below her swooped up and carried her.

Lenore smiled, "We're off to Aspiring Cove, care to take us there?"

The cloud made no reply, but just collected Lenore off and sped off at such a fast speed, all Cagalli saw was a blur of blue and white.

Finally, the cloud slowed down and Lenore gestured to Cagalli to get off. The blonde girl slipped off the cloud and extended her wings once more, flying downwards in Lenore's wake.

Cagalli was rather relieved to feel her feet back on the ground when she landed with Aaron safely cradled in her arms.

"Now, let's hope Athrun's still around here somewhere." Whispered Lenore looking around for any sign of her grown-up son.

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Athrun had been walking constantly for hours, and his legs were aching like hell. The blue-haired co-ordinator finally approached a little crystal clear stream and sat down on a rock by its bank.

Like Cagalli once was, Athrun was amazed to see little colourful guppies swimming in unison together in the stream and the flowers by the stream were literally dancing in the wind. However, nothing could beat the fact that he felt undoubtedly lonely and lost.

The young Zala had no clue where he was or even if he was alive or not. He had been seeing weird things, winged people, dancing flowers, and weird swimming fish. He missed Cagalli, he missed Aaron, and he missed Kira and the others.

Athrun looked up at the sky above him, willing himself not to cry. For once he felt ever so lost and unknowing of what to do, he wanted Cagalli to be there, to hold him and embrace him like she always did.

Suddenly, the blue-haired co-ordinator felt a pair of warm and loving arms wrap themselves around him. They felt familiar, and he recognised that scent of chamomile and roses, the scent of his _mother_, but it couldn't be, his beloved mother, Lenore Zala, was dead.

Yet the pair of arms that were embracing him weren't Cagalli's, and Athrun was very sure it was indeed Lenore Zala, the mother he loved ever so dearly. The mother he only remembered so clearly in his memory.

Slowly, Athrun turned around to face the woman behind him. Those emerald eyes, midnight-blue hair just like his, the face of his mother.

Athrun's eyes widened in absolute disbelief, his eyes soon swimming in tears.

"Yes darling, it is me, now rise and come to me." Whispered Lenore Zala, taking his arms off her son, and walking backwards slowly.

Athrun hesitantly got up, following in the footsteps of his mother, before he flew into her arms, burying his head into her shoulder, holding her close and never wanting to let go of her. He had already lost her once, he didn't want to lose her again.

Memories of his mother flooded Athrun's mind as he silently cried on, his tears flowing freely. Images of Cagalli and his son, Aaron Zala, spun in his mind. Athrun remembered Cagalli's voice, her touch and her scent. Only then, did the young Zala realise that the blonde girl truly meant more than his life to him.

"Look up, Athrun, look up. Tell me what you see," whispered Lenore, urging her son to free his face from her shoulder and look up at the two persons standing before him.

Athrun sluggishly tore his face away from his mother's shoulder, and opened his eyes wide, ready to welcome what he was about to see before him.

Instantly, Athrun's eyes widened considerably, his pupils enlarging as he stared at the smiling face of his beloved Cagalli Yula Athha and his laughing son, Aaron.

Lenore released Athrun from her grasp, letting her son run to his family, and embrace them all.

"Athrun, I'm so glad we found you, I was so worried." Said Cagalli, her voice quavering uncontrollably as she hugged Athrun tight, trying not to sandwich little Aaron between them both.

"This is paradise," said Athrun, wiping his tears away with his free hand.

"Of course, we're in heaven, the land of eternity," said Lenore wisely, urging the newest Zala family to look around.

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3 months later, two couples back down in the Mortal World celebrated the event of matrimony. Lacus Clyne was now Lacus Yamato and Kyo Zala was now Kyo Jule, and many happy events had followed after their marriage.

Dearka and Milly had also decided to tie the knot after witnessing their friends' weddings, and Lacus and Kira were also expecting their first child, and her pregnancy was confirmed. Meanwhile, Kyo and Yzak had been trying for their first child, and things were getting pretty much better, as Kyo had missed her period for two months already.

At the same time up in the Land of Eternity, Mrs. Cagalli Yula Zala is expecting her second child fathered by Athrun Zala and is learning how to cook from Lenore.

So, things have pretty much returned to normal, or even better.

_A/N: Aaaah! This is the end! Thank you to all my reviewers and supporters, and to everyone who has given me inspiration! Sorry if the last chapter was a little rushed! Don't fret about this last chappie, **as I have another Athrun&Cagalli fanfic coming up, its title is "Remember Me". **Do look out for it! Thank you so much to all! _


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